O Tetsudai
by Kitty-chan33
Summary: When you're cast as the live in maid at Funbari Onsen, things take a turn for the worse when the boys set their romantic sights on you. [SK Boys x You] [Repost]
1. Part I

**Part I: Of New Jobs and New Acquaintances **

What a day. What a _day_. Not only did you just get your papers to legally change your name from (your name) to Miryoku Katsumi (you were now a citizen of Japan and you wanted an authentic Japanese name), but, since needed a source of income and housing, today was your first day as a live-in maid. It wasn't the most glamorous job on Earth, but heck, it was better than living in a cardboard box in an alley, wasn't it?

You sighed as you walked the streets of Funbari, trying to decipher a cartoony map of the city and keep a lookout for a house labeled 'Asakura' at the same time. It was almost high noon, and the sun was beating down on your head, heating it almost to the point of discomfort. Fearing your hair would go up in flames from the intense heat, you sought the shade of a tree. Sitting down against the trunk, you glanced down the street, which had only a few houses lining the pavement. Finding nothing interesting about the houses, you leaned your head back against the tree trunk and closed your eyes. A warm breeze fluttered by, making a few stray hairs tickle your face. A few birds dove in and out of the surrounding trees. It was all so relaxing…

"KISAMA!" Your eyes shot open as the shout echoed throughout the neighborhood. You glared in the general direction of the noise, momentarily hating whoever had disturbed your peace. It just so happened that the racket had originated from directly across the street. By some stroke of luck, you spied the tiny sign that read 'Asakura,' and promptly hopped to your feet. You brushed the small amount of grass and dirt from your butt and quickly walked across the street to the large house.

Putting on an unusually happy face, you knocked on the door. No answer. But there was some commotion going on inside, as you could hear voices and various glass objects breaking. Something halfway between a sigh and a laugh escaped your lips and you shook your head lightly.

"K-Kon'nichi wa!" you tried, knocking on the door again and growing unusually tense. Thinking that you had the wrong house, you began to turn away from the door. But before you had turned all the way around, the door swung open. A panting boy with blue hair stood before you, nervously glancing over his shoulder. He looked to be about your age, give or take a few months. Before either of you could say anything, another boy appeared in the doorway, wielding a large spear and an equally as large scowl. The first boy let out a yelp, then ran off into the living room, dodging the glaive as he jumped over the furniture. You stared awkwardly.

"Anou… Excuse me?" you asked, edging into the house slowly. The blue-haired boy leapt cleanly over the couch, then glanced in your direction.

"Can you hold on a s--WHOA!" He was cut off by the blade of the spear crashing through a lamp right next to his head, shattering it. "REN! GUEST! Cut the crap!" He pointed to you, and the second boy's cheeks turned slightly pink as he refrained from slicing the couch in half. You watched curiously as the first boy, forgetting their preceding feud, whispered something to the second boy, who turned ever slightly pinker and nodded. The two boys stared at you for a few seconds before you cocked your head to the side and blinked. Sensing your curiosity, the bluenette lightly smacked the other's back and cleared his throat. The slightly shorter boy didn't move for a fraction of a second, then mumbled something unusual about peaches before disappearing into the kitchen.

"So," started the remaining teen, obviously not knowing what to say. "What can I do for ya?" You looked down at your feet, feeling the anxiety from earlier returning to the pit of your stomach.

"Is Anna-san here?" you asked. "My name's Katsumi, and I'm the new maid." The bluenette blinked, then chuckled lightly.

"Anna finally decided to get a maid," he laughed to himself before turning around and cupping his hands near his mouth. "ANNA! THE NEW MAID'S HERE! SHE NEEDS TO TALK TO YOU!" Silence. "AN-_NA!_" he yelled into the house. A slight rumbling was heard before the said female stomped into the living room. Blonde hair made its home underneath a red bandana, and a blue beaded necklace clinked dangerously against itself, resting upon the chest of a short black dress.

"Horohoro, how many times do I have to say it! Don't yell in the house!" the blonde shrieked. "Now, if you'll excuse us, we have business." The boy stalked out of the living room, shoulders hunched. Then Anna turned to you. "You're Miryoku Katsumi, am I right?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"Yes, Anna-san," you said, bowing slightly. This girl appeared to have quite a temper, so you didn't want to get on her bad side.

"You have quite a job ahead of you, Katsumi," she said sternly. You nodded, looking down at your feet again. "It normally takes seven or eight people to do what you're getting paid to do in a day. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Anna-san." Of course you understood. It wasn't that hard a concept. But before you could look up from your feet, Anna pulled a long list of jobs and chores from out of nowhere and began explaining everything to you, not even taking the time to draw a breath. After a minute of so of trying to keep up with the endless stream of words coming out of the blonde's mouth, the front door opened, bumping you in the butt. Before you could see the offending bumper, a voice spoke, followed by a pair of dark eyes peeking out from behind the door.

"Oh, gomen. Didn't see ya there." And with that, another boy about your age stepped into the room. This one had a pair of orange headphones on his head, a lazy smile on his face, and a pair of shopping bags in his arms. Anna glared at the new boy.

"Yoh, you're late. You were supposed to be here fifteen minutes ago. What happened?" she demanded, crossing her arms. The brunette simultaneously set the bags on the floor and closed the door with his hip. A feminine action, no doubt. He then gazed over a you, not voicing the question that shone in his eyes all too well.

"Oh, I just got hung up," he said indolently, still eyes still fixated on you. He smelled a bit like... oranges? "Who's this?" he asked, nodding towards you.

"This is Katsumi; the new maid." The brunette smiled slightly, then nodded. "Katsumi, this is Yoh. He's my fiancé, so don't try anything. But the others are free for the picking." You frowned lightly, a little offended that your new boss might think you'd try to come onto her fiancé like some sort of jezebel. "Yoh, go put the groceries away before the milk spoils. It'd be hell for you if Ren didn't get any milk."

"Nice meeting you, Katsumi," he said, smiling. With that, Yoh picked up the grocery bags and headed into the kitchen, casting you a fleeting glance and an accompanying wink.

"Should I--?" You pointed into the kitchen. You _were_ the maid after all. It wouldn't be right if your employer's fiancé did your work.

"No." Anna shook her head. "Yoh needs to do it." You nodded slowly. "And one more thing, Katsumi," Anna said, slightly nicer-sounding. "When you start work tomorrow, I expect you to be wearing this." Despite the kinder tone in her voice, her words hit you harder than anything she'd said in the last five minutes. She pulled out a French maid's outfit from the same unknown place she'd gotten her list. You stared at the frilly black and white dress in disbelief.

"A-Are you serious, Anna-san?" you asked. The blonde stared you straight in the eye.

"Do I look like I'm _not_ serious?" she replied. To your dismay, she shoved the dress into your hands and opened the front door to let you out. "Bring your things with you tomorrow. I've already got a room for you waiting. Sayonara." Before you knew what was going on, you were back outside the front door.

As you made your way out of the front yard, dress in hand, you shook your head. What a day. What a _day_.

**End Part I.**


	2. Part II

**Part II: Of Englishmen in Bathrobes **

You woke up unnaturally early the next day, partially because the blinds on your bedroom window had been packed away into a box, which was to be brought with you to the Asakura residence. The light peered into your almost-empty bedroom, beckoning you to wake up and get going. Today was the first _real_ day of your job at the Asakuras'.

After you showered and such, you stood in the middle of your bedroom wearing only a towel and stared down at the French maid's outfit. Within the past twelve hours, it seemed to have grown considerably shorter and skimpier. Giving it a lame look as you held it up in front of yourself at arm's length to get a better look at it, you decided it could be worse. No, wait… It really couldn't.

You sighed slightly as you looked in the mirror at your now-slutty-looking self, clad in the black silk attire. The overly-short skirt seemed to have a built-in petticoat, as white lacy ruffles poked out of the bottom. And the chest-area displayed a little more than it should, in your opinion. You pulled the front as much as you could before swiftly exiting your apartment with your box of belongings and leaving the key with the landlord.

Somehow, you remembered the way to your new job as if you'd come that way every day for a year. After receiving quite a few stares and whistles from the morning-people of Funbari, you entered the obscured front yard of your destination. Despite the fact that the sun had just risen, you knocked loudly on the front door.

"Kon'nichi wa! Anna-san!" you almost yelled at the door after it didn't open. 'Why don't they ever answer the door?' you thought, pounding at the wooden slab ahead of you. Finally, the door opened slowly, revealing a large pair of tired green eyes. The face that framed the startlingly emerald eyes was equally as tired, and the green hair to top it all off was slightly ruffled. Stunned, you stared back at the yawning figure ahead of you. This was definitely _not_ Anna-san… The robe-clad teen spoke before a comprehensive thought found its way to your mouth.

"Gee, isn't it a little early to be selling things?" the green-haired one said, trying to sound polite.

"Gomen nasai!" you said. "I must have the wrong house!" You hurriedly checked the surname on the side of the house. Surprisingly, it read 'Asakura.' A little confused, you looked into the house. Yup. It was the same house you were in yesterday. Just then, Anna emerged in the doorway. Your confusion pretty much disappeared, but you still felt uneasy with Anna around.

"A-Anna-san," you said. "Who's this?" you asked, pointing to the unnamed teen in the robe, a little confused by its gender. It sounded like a boy, but it looked like a girl. Anna looked slightly bored.

"This is just Lyserg. He's a friend of ours," she stated simply. You nodded slightly, finally understanding. Anna glanced at Lyserg, who happened to be pondering your apparel. "Lyserg, this is Katsumi; she's the new maid."

"Hello," you said as you extended your hand to Lyserg.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." He spoke softly and with a British accent, and he took your hand thoughtfully, but instead of shaking it as you expected, Lyserg placed a soft kiss right above your knuckles. You resisted the urge to blush and smack him away as you looked to Anna for assistance. But she seemed to be just as surprised as you. Lyserg blushed a bit and looked away from the two of you.

"Well then," Anna stated in a very ruffled voice. "Allow me to show you the house so you don't get lost while cleaning."

"O-Okay," you said, trying to remember how to breathe. It wasn't normal to kiss others' hands as a greeting in this day and age. "I-It was nice m-meeting you, Lyserg-san," you said over your shoulder as Anna lead you into the kitchen.

"Nice meeting you too, Katsumi," Lyserg said quietly as he shyly waved at you, even though you couldn't see him. But from the tone of his voice, it sounded as if his face was contrasting perfectly with his hair and eyes.

**End Part II.**


	3. Part III

**Part III: Of Spilled Tea, Stir Fry, and Smalltalk **

As soon as you entered the kitchen, you wished you hadn't. The two boys you saw briefly at the beginning of your last visit were fighting. Again. The shorter of the two was standing on the tea table waving his spear in the bluenette's face, his spike considerably larger than the day before. The bluenette was holding a teacup as if it were a grenade. They were both yelling simultaneously, so it was slightly difficult to understand what was coming from either of their mouths. Seeing a vein rising on Anna's forehead and sensing the coming danger, you stepped back a few paces and into the hallway. Lyserg, who's face had resumed its natural color, had just entered the kitchen and saw Anna glaring the bickering pair, and promptly stepped back out of the room.

After tightening the sash on his robe, he nudged you slightly with his elbow, then nodded for you to follow him into another room. Silently, you obeyed, and he led you into the living room. Just as soon as you finished stepping through the doorframe, you heard Anna's _very_ angry voice echoing throughout the inn. A pair harsh smacking sounds, and two yelps to accompany them. Then heavy footsteps stomping down the hall, and Anna appeared in the doorway, holding one of her hands as it began to turn red. Lyserg looked like a deer caught in the headlights, but quickly snapped out of it and scooted out of the room through a different door. He left you!

"Now that that's taken care of, feel free to start making breakfast at any time," Anna said sternly. You were sure that "any time" meant "right now," but wait a minute! You were the maid! Maids don't cook! Chefs cook! Maids clean up after people!

"Anna-san," you protested quietly. "You hired me to clean this place, not cook. I can't cook. The last time I tried to cook something other than instant ramen, I caught the stove on fire." Anna looked slightly annoyed.

"You're just going to have to learn to--" Anna was cut off by a rapid knocking on the door, followed by a muffled "Ohayô, Yoh-kun!" She huffed a bit before stomping over to the door and throwing it open, revealing a _very_ small blonde boy.

'This is nuts,' you thought. 'This house is like a circus!'

"Is Yoh-kun around?" the tiny boy asked, sounding slightly nervous with Anna around.

"Upstairs," Anna said grumpily. Then she turned to you. "Katsumi, this is Manta. I figure that you should be acquainted since you two will be spending quite some time together in the kitchen. And Manta, this is Katsumi; the new maid."

Polite hellos were exchanged, than Manta ran off up the stairs in search of Yoh.

"Okay, back to breakfast," Anna stated. "Make it. And feel free to scold the idiots hanging around the kitchen."

Soon enough, you found yourself back in the kitchen, this time trying to chop vegetables amidst a shouting match. You wouldn't have minded the boys' fighting too much, except for the fact that the were throwing things, causing them to shatter or spill. After hearing the third tea cup smash against something, you turned around, staring at the duo.

"Would you two mind _not_ causing so much destruction?" you asked as nicely as you could. The two boys stopped to listen to you. "Just you know, I'm the one who's going to have to pick up after you, and cleaning up broken glass is really a pain. I don't care if you fight, but just don't break stuff."

"Yeah, okay," the bluenette said thoughtfully after a moment of silence. Just as he finished speaking, he grabbed a full, unbroken teacup off the table, promptly flinging the scalding contents all over the shorter teen. The latter let out a shriek, then a colorful string of curses as he tried to fan the heat away from himself. You huffed and walked over to the tea table, arms crossed.

"That's _not_ what I meant!" you almost yelled. "You!" You pointed to the bluenette, then to the door. "Out!" He trudged out of the room in the same manner as he had the previous day. You glared after him for a moment before turning to the other teen, who was now trying to wring out the sleeves of his sopping wet robe. You could see the steam rising from his bumbling form as you began to pick up the remains of the three broken teacups under the table.

"Kisama…" he growled under his breath, flapping the weighed-down sleeves around. You poked your head up from under the table.

"Excuse me?" you asked innocently.

"Nothing…" he muttered, and you went back to picking up the largest earthenware pieces. An awkward silence took over momentarily before the still-steaming boy decided to break it. "What's your name, woman?" A little surprised that he called you "woman," you shot your head up from under the table to look at him angrily.

"I-I'm sorry?" you asked with a tiny tone of annoyance. If he was going to refer to you as "woman," this definitely wouldn't work.

"I take it you're working here now, so it would be nice if I knew what to call you." You blinked.

"Oh, my name's Miryoku Katsumi. And you are…?"

"Tao Ren," he stated simply. He didn't really seem like he wanted to talk about anything more at the present moment, even though his robe was no longer steaming. You finished picking up the ceramic debris, then went back to cutting the vegetables. After a while of chopping, you had your first encounter with a hot frying pan in quite a while. You began to grow a little nervous looking at the scorching oil in the bottom of the pan, but put the vegetables in despite your fear. Surprisingly, it wasn't a disaster area like you had expected it to be. After the sizzling vegetables began to quiet down, you grew more and more relaxed until you actually felt comfortable in this setting.

Okay, almost comfortable. No one could really be comfortable under the heated stare of a tea-soaked superior. Also, the lace ruffles underneath the skirt were getting to be _very_ annoying and tickly, and you had a feeling that the almost nonexistent skirt was showing more to the opposite sex than should be seen before 2:30 in the morning. Feeling Ren's stare was becoming slightly annoying, so you decided to start a conversation between the two of you.

"Who was the blue-haired guy you were fighting with, Ren-san? A friend of yours?" you asked politely. Ren snorted.

"That was just Horohoro." Even though you had your back to Ren, you could tell he had a look of extreme dislike on his face.

"Yeah? Tell me about him," you said, trying to keep this conversation from hitting a rock wall.

"He's an idiot."

"Keep going."

"He's a bigmouth snowboarder who couldn't sit still if his life depended on it." Pause.

"Mm-hmm. I'm still listening."

"He makes fun of me a lot for reasons _I_ can't even understand. It really pisses me off -- wait a minute. Why am I telling _you_ all this?"

"Because I asked you, now keep going."

**End Part III.**


	4. Part IV

**Part IV: Of Pixies and Flyswatters **

Unknowingly, you had kept a conversation with Ren up for longer than anyone had in the past six or seven years. Without him knowing it, you had gotten him to tell you about everyone staying at the inn, good traits and bad. Ren could be quite a chatterbox if he got going on a topic, provided Horohoro wasn't there to interrupt. According to Ren, Horo would do just about anything as long as it got him attention; Yoh was the laziest person on the face of the earth; just about anything could make Lyserg cry; Anna bitchslaps at random; and so on with unflattering traits.

As you were setting the food on the low table in the dining room, you noticed the one Ren called "Horohoro" stick his head in the door, sniffing the air like a hungry puppy. He couldn't _possibly_ be as bad as Ren said he was, but then again, Ren struck you as more of a glass-half-empty kind of guy, so it probably wasn't true.

Horo caught sight of the steaming food on the table, then scrambled over to the table, crashing down onto a cushion before screaming into the house, "BREAKFAST! COME AND EAT IT BEFORE I DO!" A slight rumbling was heard throughout the house, and you became a little nervous. Ren, who was ambling almost merrily into the dining room, seemed to not even notice; and Horohoro was gazing intently at the piping breakfast. Before you could even ask what this rumbling noise was, the populace of the inn was seated around the table on purple cushions, eating rapidly. With their constant chattering and consumption, they reminded you slightly of the nematodes on Spongebob Squarepants.

Before you knew it, Ren was motioning you over to the table rather rudely. A snap of his fingers in the air clearly signaled he had dropped his Mr. Social mood, and you huffed irritably before trying your best not to stomp over to the table. You glared down at him before he shoved a glass milk bottle under your nose.

"Get me more," he all but commanded. You scowled, before realizing the noise in the room had gone down a few decibels and there were many pairs of eyes watching your every move. The only noise in the room was the few whispers of "Who's that?" and "I don't know." You turned slightly red after you remembered the doll-sized dress you were wearing and forced a _very_ cheesy smile in the direction of Anna. Did she forget to tell the inhabitants of the Asakura household that they were getting a maid? She probably wanted them to find out about you on their own, just so she wouldn't have to take the time to introduce you to anyone.

"Right," Anna said through her teacup. "Everyone, this is Miryoku Katsumi. She's the maid now." You waved slightly at your new superiors, then laughed a little nervously. Most of them smiled back or said a quick "hello." In order to escape the few who still stared, you went back into the kitchen to fetch Ren some more milk. You brought it to him, then quickly returned to the kitchen to wash the pots and pans from cooking breakfast. From looking at your list of things to do, you had a lot to clean before lunch, which you also had to cook. Might as well get a head start on it while you could.

Soon enough, breakfast was over, which meant there were more dishes to be washed. Dishes proved to be quite heavy as you lugged a huge stack from the dining room into the kitchen. You were moderately surprised at how efficient you were once you got used to the scalding water and slick dish soap. Once the dishes were done, you pulled out the list Anna had given you. Vacuuming the bedrooms. After searching the whole house for the vacuum cleaner, you then lugged it up the stairs and into the first bedroom, which happened to be Lyserg's. If the overall greenness of it wasn't annoying enough, there were plenty of dirty clothes on the floor to either pick up or maneuver around.

After deciding that it would be easier to pick the clothes up as you went along, you switched on the vacuum and began to scour the pale green carpet with the noisy machine, scooping up or kicking aside pairs of pants and such. When you were almost done, you picked up a green Sherlock Holmes-ish cape from the corner. As you did so, an enormous bug-ish thing flew out from underneath. Letting out a small scream, you leapt backwards from the cape and landed with a thud on the other side of the room.

Your vision a little distorted from fright, you peered across the room at the giant bug, which looked like a gigantic pink firefly. Barely knowing what you were doing, you ran out of the room, only to return a second later with a flyswatter. Creeping up on the bug, which was now flying in confused little circles near the bed, an evil grin cracked across your face as you raised the flyswatter slowly. Just as you were doing so, Lyserg appeared in the door, now changed out of the robe from earlier this morning. The pink bug shot across the room and nestled itself in Lyserg's hair. _Why_ didn't he notice it? Or rather, why didn't he seem to care that there was a four-inch-long firefly nesting in his hair?

"Lyserg," you said in a harsh but hushed voice. "Don't. Move." Lyserg's eyes grew slightly larger than before.

"Why?" he squeaked. You could see his muscles tensing underneath his poofy, white shirt.

"There's a _big_ bug in your hair," you replied in the same whisper as before. "You stay there, I'm gonna smack it." You inched over to Lyserg and, holding the flyswatter's handle at the very end between two fingers, lightly tapped him on the head. As soon as you had done so, he began to flail mercilessly, his nose scrunched up.

"Eww! Don't put that nasty thing in my _hair!_" he yelled, still flailing. "You don't know where that's _been!_" You, on the other hand, were chasing the pink firefly back over to the bed, flyswatter still in hand. You smirked evilly at the bug, which had landed on the pillow. Just as you were about to hit the bug, Lyserg, who was now finished with his little gross-out session, half-yelled half-squeaked, "Morphine! No, don't hurt Morphine!" and lunged himself at the bed to shield the bug. You lowered the flyswatter.

"Lyserg, what are you talking about?" you asked lamely as Lyserg picked the bug up off his pillow.

"This isn't a bug, Katsumi," he said meekly, cradling the tiny pink form to his chest. "It's Morphine."

"Morphine? Like the drug?" you asked, trying to make some sense of this.

"No. Morphine is my spirit."

**End Part IV.**


	5. Part V

**Part V: Of Many Unearthly Meetings **

"But what's surprising is that you can see her." You looked a little confused. "Most people can't see spirits. Wait a minute! Are you a shaman?" You were getting more and more confused by the second. You knew a little about shamans; you'd heard them being mentioned once in History class, but you were almost asleep, so you didn't get much out of it.

"Okay, if I were a shaman, would I be cleaning your room?" you asked after vaguely remembering what little you knew. Lyserg smiled a little, clearly thinking hard about something.

"Probably not… And now that I think about it, I don't remember seeing you at the Shaman Fights, so you must not be one of us."

"Whoa, wait. One of 'us'? What are you talking about? I'm not following this whole 'shaman'-thing you've got going," you said, trying desperately to keep up. Almost as if it were on cue, Ren (who just happened to be walking by the door) caught on to what you were saying and scowled deeply at Lyserg, then marched angrily into the room.

"Lyserg, did you tell her _already?_" he asked huffily, crossing his arms over his chest. "I thought we weren't going to drag any more people into this kind of thing. She's got no business messing with spirits." Lyserg looked a bit upset with being yelled at.

"She can see spirits, Ren!" Lyserg yelled as if the sky was about to fall. "She found Morphine while she was cleaning in here!" Ren looked slightly surprised, then smirked.

"Is she a shaman?" he asked, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. For some reason, he seemed to not want to acknowledge the fact that you were sitting right in front of him. Lyserg shook his head.

"No, apparently she can only see them like Manta," he said. Ren twitched slightly.

"So should we show her the other spirits in the house right now, or should she discover them on her own?" Ren asked. It didn't really sound like he wanted and answer, neither did it sound like he was addressing Lyserg. This bothered you a bit.

"I wanna see them now!" you half-yelled. You weren't about to be getting out of the bath one day and all of a sudden be face to face with a dirty old man. Ren sighed, then pulled out a memorial tablet from seemingly nowhere.

"Bason!" he said sternly. Almost instantly, the space between you and Ren was occupied by a giant… _Thing_. It almost looked like a person, but it was much too big. Then it turned around to face you.

"Um. S-So this is your spirit, R-Ren?" you asked, terrified of this new being but trying to smile nonetheless. Ren nodded.

"His name's Bason." Ren sounded as if he knew you were scared and was trying to be comforting to you, but he didn't really know how.

"H-Hello, Bason," you said, beginning to tremble a little. Bason waved sheepishly. By now you realized that you were facing a ghost. Ghosts were scary, right? And this was a _giant_ ghost. Even _more_ scary! Sensing your fear, Lyserg put a hand on your shoulder, making you squeal in fright.

"It's okay," he said. "He can't hurt you; he's just a ghost, remember?" Ren looked pissed. Now was _his_ time to comfort you, not Lyserg's! Bason was _his_ ghost! So he did what came naturally when he was annoyed or angry…

"HORO!" his voiced echoed throughout the inn. Realizing his mistake, he quickly tried to cover up. "Get in here!" After a few seconds, Horohoro wandered in, and Bason swirled back into his memorial tablet.

"Jeez, Ren," he yawned. "You don't need to yell; I'm right down the hall… Whaddya want?" A snort from Ren followed this remark.

"It seems Katsumi can see spirits," he informed Horo, who looked stunned. "She wants to see Kororo." You were about to protest (you didn't want to see another huge ghost), but a small 'pop' and cloud of smoke originating from above Horo's shoulder prevented you. Expecting another colossal apparition, you drew back slightly.

Instead of a ghost, floated a doll-sized… well… Spirit. She was possibly one of the cutest things you'd ever seen before, and you grew blushy and starry-eyed.

"Ooh! She's so cute!" you cooed as you watched her nestle herself in Horo's hair. Horo grinned and blushed.

"She's a Koropokkur; her name's Kororo," he said proudly.

"Really! That's so cool!" you said excitedly. Horo nodded. "What's a Koropokkur?" The three boys in the room fell down anime style at your question.

"Katsumi, you've got a _lot_ to learn about spirits," Lyserg said with an apologetic smile on his face.

**End Part V.**


	6. Part VI

**Part VI: Of Kitchen Knives, Flames, and Brothers**

The rest of the morning passed quite well. That is, if you call passing out cold each time a new giant ghost was introduced to you "well." But, by far, your least favorite of them all was a pair that the pink-haired owner called "Konchi and Ponchi." They hadn't even waited five seconds before they both poked their heads up your frilly maid's skirt, causing you to smack them with a random frying pan. Fearing dismissal for your harsh actions, you stuttered your apologies to Tamao, who forgave you almost instantly due to her compassionate nature.

Feeling like an idiot after what you had done, you decided it was best that you get back to work. After vacuuming a few bedrooms with no interruption, you were beginning to get used to your new job. Being the maid wasn't _so_ bad, now was it? Well, not until your employers start to acknowledge you as possible girlfriend material.

The ever-girlfriend-less Horohoro (according to Ren) wandered into the living room (which was were you were currently vacuuming), and settled himself on a couch in the middle of the room. You twitched as you felt him staring at you as you maneuvered the humming machine around the room. It wasn't like you could tell him to leave you alone, so you did the next-best thing; try to start a conversation.

"Horohoro-san, where are you from?" you asked from nowhere. Seeing a look of confusion on the bluenette's face, you clarified. "I've never heard the name 'Horohoro' before. It doesn't sound like you're from around here."

"Me?" he asked casually. "I'm Ainu. Do you have any Ainu in you?" You smiled lightly. He seemed to be a more adequate conversationalist than Ren, who either said nothing whatsoever or talked nonstop.

"No; I can't say that I do," you responded politely.

"Would you like some?" This took a minute to sink in, and then poor Horo was at the receiving end of an upright Hoover hurdling through the air as you stormed angrily out of the room, your face a scarlet hue, trying to refrain from shrieking profanities. As you entered the kitchen, you nearly bumped into Yoh, who looked to be heading toward the front door with Manta.

"Gomen nasai, Yoh-san," you said hurriedly, trying to un-blush yourself. "It's just--"

"Did Horo-kun use a disgusting pick-up line on you, Katsumi?" Manta cut in, crossing his tiny arms. You nodded, a little surprised at the accuracy. Yoh laughed lightly.

"He only uses those on Tamao," the taller boy said good-naturedly. "I was wondering how long it would be before he started in on you. Wait a minute, how long _was_ that, Manta?" he asked the blonde. Manta looked at his watch.

"It's about 11:30. I'd say at least three hours, Yoh-kun." Yoh smiled.

"Well, there you have it, Katsumi," he said cheerfully. "Now, Manta and I need to go. There's a BobLove signing at the music store, and we need to get there soon before it ends." And with that, the two friends walked out of the kitchen and down the long hall.

Since it was almost noon, you decided you should start to make lunch. You decided to ask Anna what she would like for lunch. About five minutes after you began to peel vegetables for the midday meal, the doorbell rang. Since you were the maid, you figured that you should answer the door. You walked quickly down the long hall that connected the kitchen to the front door without even setting down your knife, then opened said door.

Standing on the front steps were two people; a girl about your age (give or take a few years) with long, silvery-purple hair, and a tall blonde man with square glasses. The girl gave you a sickeningly sweet smile.

"Is Lyserg in?" she asked with a voice like audible sugar. The tall man cleared his throat, giving the impression of higher status than you. You frowned inwardly.

"Um, yeah. Could you wait here just a minute, please?" you asked as you began to walk down the long hallway in search of the green-haired boy. You didn't have to look for very long, as you found him sitting on the couch in the living room, mournfully trying to get a large lump on Horohoro's head to go down using a bag of ice.

"Lyserg-san, you've got visitors," you said, nodding your head toward the front door. Lyserg perked up.

"Who is it?" he asked, trying to get Horo to hold the ice on his own.

"They didn't say," you said as you fingered the blade of the knife you still hadn't deposited yet. "There's a girl with long silver hair and a blonde man with glasses." Lyserg looked ecstatic as he zipped off down the hall. You and Horo shared an inquiring look. Unfortunately, Horo seemed to be inquiring about something completely different.

"You know, Katsumi; that's a very nice dress you've got on. Can I talk you out of it?"

Soon enough, the knife you'd been holding was stuck into the couch near Horo's head. Luckily, your aim was a bit off, so the only damage done was a few sky blue stands of hair left on the seat of the couch as the Ainu scurried off into another room, squawking nervously. Quickly drawing the knife from the couch, you scuttled back into the kitchen to finish lunch.

As soon as you reached the tiled room, none other than Ren glided into the kitchen through a different door, scowling in the general direction Horohoro had run off in.

"What the hell was all Ainu-baka's squealing about?" he asked harshly. You blushed profusely, not knowing how to phrase your last encounter. But the gears inside Ren's head were already turning. "Kisama," he hissed, drawing out his spear. "He's so dead!" Ren seemed to be talking to himself more than you or Horo. As he left the kitchen, you noticed he was practically shaking with suppressed anger. You cringed when you heard the smashing of glass objects, then what sounded like a body being slammed into a wall.

Sighing, you went back to peeling random vegetables over the sink. Looking up out the window over the kitchen sink, you were incredibly surprised to see a pair of sweet brown eyes peeking up into the house at you. So surprised that you accidentally cut the palm of your hand on the knife, allowing blood to drip gently into the sink.

"Yoh-san!" you squeaked. Even though you'd only seen him a few times, you could recognize his eyes anywhere. "What are you doing out there?" As if to answer your question, Yoh levitated, yes _levitated_, through the open window and into the kitchen. Yet, when he set himself gracefully on his feet, you began to realize that this, in fact, was not Yoh. Not Yoh at _all_. This one's hair was much longer, and he was sporting a long, cream-colored shawl. He seemed to have an air of security despite the fact that he was standing, uninvited, in the middle of someone's kitchen. Or maybe it was just self-confidence; but either way, it scared you a bit.

"Let me see your hand." He spoke tenderly in spite of his powerful impression. Not knowing what else to do, you held out your trembling hand. He took it, holding it in his larger gloved hands like a small child holding a frog; both hands clasping gently, yet possessively. He didn't seem the least bit interested in the fact that his gloves were being soaked by the life-sustaining fluid as it now dripped onto the floor.

You gasped as your hand and both of his were enveloped in a heatless, yet violent-looking flame. Pulling your flaming appendage away, you breathlessly looked from your hand and into his eyes, then back to your hand again as you realized that, when the flame had disappeared, you were no longer bleeding. You stood there silently, although your head was screaming, as you watched this boy's right hand burst into the same vicious-looking as before. As the flames dissipated, a blood-red, long-stemmed rose rested tranquilly in his hand. He held it out to you, and you took it, anxiously looking up into his calm brown eyes and silently asking every question that raced through your mind. He smiled loftily.

"I just wanted to see what caught otôto's attention," he said casually as he hopped back out the kitchen window and into the yard. "Ja!" With that, he burst into flames and disappeared from your view.

'Otôto?' you thought. 'The only person that even resembles him in the slightest is Yoh, but he doesn't have an older brother, does he? And he doesn't have feelings for me, does he? And who was that?' A million questions screamed through your mind as you tried to figure every that had just happened out. But, after a few seconds of thinking, you realized that this boy had disappeared in a bubble of flames, thus causing you to pass out cold on the kitchen floor.

**End Part VI.**


	7. Part VII

**Part VII: Of Old Grudges, Bath Towels, and Girl-Talk **

When you came to, you realized that you were still on the tiled kitchen floor. Apparently, you had only been unconscious for a few minutes, as no one had taken notice to the maid sprawled on their kitchen floor. Either that, or they were just really stupid. You could hear Ren and Horo still fighting in the other room. They were so loud; your head was pounding from where it hit the floor and the two combatants _weren't_ helping it. You scowled and brought your hand up to tuck a stray lock of hair behind your ear, but something prevented it.

You looked down into your hand and saw the offending object; a single red rose. You gasped, realizing blood was covering your hand wrist, and when you followed the long stem to a few inches above your knee, you noticed quite a bit of the red fluid had dripped down the green shaft onto the floor. Another small crimson puddle sat innocently on the while tile floor near the inside of your thigh. _More blood?_ It wasn't _that_ time of the month again, was it? No…

"_Let me see your hand." He spoke tenderly in spite of his powerful impression. Not knowing what else to do, you held out your trembling hand. He took it, holding it in his larger gloved hands like a small child holding a frog; both hands clasping gently, yet possessively. He didn't seem the least bit interested in the fact that his gloves, now redder than before due to your blood, were being soaked by the life-sustaining fluid as it now dripped onto the floor. _

_You gasped as your hand and both of his were enveloped in a heatless, yet violent-looking flame. Pulling your flaming appendage away, you breathlessly looked from your hand and into his eyes, then back to your hand again as you realized that, when the flame had disappeared, you were no longer bleeding. You stood there silently, although your head was screaming, as you watched this boy's right hand burst into the same vicious-looking as before. As the flames dissipated, a blood-red, long-stemmed rose rested tranquilly in his hand. He held it out to you, and you took it, anxiously looking up into his calm brown eyes and silently asking every question that raced through your mind. He smiled loftily._

"_I just wanted to see what caught otôto's attention," he said casually as he hopped back out the kitchen window and into the yard. "Ja!" With that, he burst into flames and disappeared from your view. _

"What happened?" you asked yourself in a whisper. "Who--''? Otôto--? What--?" Seeing as how there was presently no one in the room, you didn't care that you were talking incoherently to yourself. You continued with your senseless questions, then a thought hit you. "Oh my God!" you shrieked, remembering the boy you'd just seen had burst into flames, then disappeared.

At the sound of your yell, both Horo and Ren had come running into the room. Horo's lip was bleeding, as was Ren's nose; apparently, their little fight had gotten out of hand.

"What's wrong, Katsumi?" Horo asked, wiping the blood from his lip. You stood up slowly, clutching the rose as if it might fly away from you, and smearing your own blood all over your legs and skirt in the process. Ren eyed the reddened lace around your thighs nervously.

"What happened?" he asked, pinching his nose to stop the blood flow. You shook your head, then leaned on the counter for support and set the rose down, silently burying your face in your hands. "Really Katsumi; what happened? You're covered in blood from the hips down--"

"If you spend some time with me, we can fix that little problem for about nine months," Horo interrupted proudly. You shot an angry glare at Horo, then spoke quietly.

"I cut myself." The word 'cutter?' shone in both boys' eyes for just a second.

"But you're not bleeding," Horo inquired. "You've just got blood all over you."

"He healed me," you said quietly, trying to keep this as simple as possible. Ren was determined to figure out what was going on.

"Who healed you?" he asked sternly. You shrugged almost sadly.

"I don't know," you said. You were beginning to worry that you were going crazy. The boy you met minutes ago _had_ gone up in flames. There was always the possibility of spontaneous combustion, but wouldn't there be a smoking corpse in the yard? "I don't know…" you repeated on the verge of tears as you sunk down to the floor and leaned against the base of the counter.

Ren looked concerned, then tried to lift you back to your feet, but you slid back down onto the cold floor. Instead of just sitting down next to you like any normal person would, Ren picked you up and plopped you lightly on the counter. He looked into your eyes calmly.

"What happened, Katsumi?" he asked in a voice that told you that that was the last time he would have to ask. You sighed shakily.

"I was peeling vegetables, then I saw someone who looked a lot like Yoh standing at the window." Ren looked a bit nervous at this, but nodded his head. "I was so surprised that the knife slipped and I cut myself. He floated in through the window and took my hand, then he healed it with fire." Horo "irk"-ed when the word "fire" was mentioned.

"Then what happened?" Ren asked in an I'm-trying-to-be-sweet voice.

"He gave me that rose--" You pointed to the rose on the counter. "Then said something about 'otôto's attention' and jumped out the window. He stood in the middle of the lawn, then burst into flames and disappeared." Horo looked terrified, and Ren was starting to get an angry look in his eyes.

"What did this guy look like?" Horo asked apprehensively.

"Just like Yoh," you said. "Only he had longer hair. And he was wearing an off-white shawl."

The mentioning of the shawl seemed to do it, and Ren scowled as hard as he could.

"Hao; Kisama," he hissed, glaring out the window at a scorched area on the lawn.

"Who's Hao?" you asked, suddenly feeling as if they had been hiding something from you. As soon as the word "Hao" was said loud enough to actually hear, Lyserg poked his head into the room, scowling.

"Who said Hao?" he asked angrily. Then his expression softened when he saw you covered in blood. "Katsumi, what happened!" he almost yelled as he ran into the middle of the room, skidding slightly in the blood on the floor. Horo looked annoyed and afraid at the same time.

"Hao was here," the Ainu said sternly to Lyserg, who gasped.

"Did _he_ do this to you, Katsumi!" the green-haired boy asked loudly. As soon as he had said this, his two guests entered the kitchen. "Jeanne-sama! Marco-san! Look what Hao did!" he yelled as he pointed at you. The blonde man started to shake with anger, but the girl looked at you with pitying eyes.

"Poor dear," she said. This bothered you a little to have a girl about your age call you a "dear" as if she was older and wiser than you. "Are you alright now?" she asked as you hopped off the counter. You nodded, and she smiled sadly.

"Jeanne-sama! Hao was here! Aren't you going to do something!" Lyserg shouted to the girl. She shook her head.

"There's nothing we _can_ do, Lyserg," she said, still wielding that sad smile.

"What! Why!" he asked in exasperation. Somehow, he sounded like a little kid when he was like this.

"He's probably miles away from here by now," the girl said. The blonde man nodded. You were beginning to become slightly uncomfortable as the blood on your legs began to dry.

"Excuse me, but I'd like to get this blood off me now." And with that, you began to walk away from the discussion, and towards the bathroom. When you reached the bathroom, you filled the sink with cold water and peeled off the dress. Letting it soak in the sink, you then showered quickly and dried off. Wrapping a towel firmly around you, you pulled your dress out of the sink. The water was now tinted slightly brownish-red from the blood, and you wrung it out over the draining sink.

But quickly, you found yourself in a dilemma. With all your clothes in a box next to your bed, you had nothing to wear for the time being. Sitting down on the edge of the tub, you began to contemplate your decision; you could either wait an embarrassingly long time in the bathroom for your dress to dry, or you could run through the house to your room wearing nothing but a towel. After thinking things through over and over, you made up your mind to go with the towel.

You opened the door little by little and peaked out. No one was in sight. You silently slid out of the bathroom and down the hall, clutching the white towel firmly to your body. You managed to slip past the living room (which was where Lyserg was entertaining his guests) and up the stairs. When you turned the corner as you reached the second floor, you ran into the last person (other than Horohoro) you wanted to encounter: Anna.

"Why are you running around my house almost naked, Katsumi?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"Anou… I spilled something on myself, Anna-san," you lied. You didn't want another 'Oh my God; Hao was here' incident. "I took a shower and washed the dress; it's drying in the bathroom downstairs." Anna glared. You could see her fingernails gripping her arms a little too tightly, as if she were worried about something.

"I don't want you traipsing around my house exposed like that. It's immoral," she said. Exposed? You weren't exposed! In fact, the towel you had wrapped around you exposed less than that stupid dress she made you wear! You started to become annoyed.

"Gomen nasai, Anna-san," you said dutifully as you tried to slip away. Anna grabbed your arm as you passed her. She obviously wasn't finished with you yet.

"Imagine if someone had seen you like that; Yoh, for instance," she said coldly. Now you understood! She was worried that Yoh might become attracted to you if you showed him enough skin. …Nah! He wouldn't! But…

"_I just wanted to see what caught otôto's attention," he said casually as he hopped back out the kitchen window and into the yard. "Ja!" With that, he burst into flames and disappeared from your view. _

You "irk"-ed. Yoh _liked_ you? And Anna _knew! What!_ It was dead-obvious that Horo and Ren liked you, and a little less so about Lyserg, but _Yoh!_ No, no, _no! _This was getting a little too complicated. You nodded, then ran off down the hall to your room before you met up with anyone else.

Upon reaching your room, you closed the door quietly, put your back to it, and slid down to the floor, sighing greatly. This was getting to be too much for you. If you were one of the insanely-popular girls at school, it wouldn't have been too bad, since you would know how to deal with it. But you weren't and you didn't. You knew a hell of a lot about things like flirting signs and how to keep a guy "occupied," but when it came to complicated things like this, you had no clue what was going on. On top of that, you weren't really a diary person, so you needed someone to talk to about these awful female-teen issues…

"Now, don't get me wrong, Pirika; your brother's a really nice guy, but he needs to slow down a little bit. He's trying to rush into a relationship I never agreed to." Presently, you were doing laundry and spilling your guts out to a blue-haired Ainu girl as she sat on top of the dryer. You couldn't believe you were talking to _Pirika,_ of all people, about her _brother_. You were constantly worrying that you were going to say something to offend their family, so you had to think about each and every little thing you said.

"You're absolutely right, Katsumi," the Ainu said, crossing her arms. "Onii-chan has always been like that; ready to rush into a relationship that doesn't exist."

"That's really too bad," you said as you folded a poofy pair of black pants. "He'd be really sweet if he didn't do that -- not that he's not sweet already -- but maybe if he were to calm down a bit--"

"And be more like Ren," Pirika interrupted as she hopped down off the dryer. It was the third time she had mentioned his name in the last ten minutes, and you were beginning to suspect something.

"Do you like Ren?" you asked, trying to make it seem random. Pirika almost dropped the shirt she was holding (which looked _mighty_ similar to the one Ren had been wearing today). She laughed nervously as she attempted to fold it.

"Now what makes you think that?" she asked. A pink stain that matched her jacket was forming across her cheeks as she said this. You looked off to the side, a small, friendly smile was playing at your lips as you took the shirt from her after her fifth attempt to fold it.

"It's just that whenever you mention him, which you've done three times in the last ten minutes, by the way, you blush and get all clumsy." Pirika blushed more deeply as the two of you shared a giggle. Then her face got serious and she sighed.

"If I tell you this, you have to _promise_ you won't tell anyone, okay?" she said just above a whisper.

"Sure," you said. You could keep a secret. "But wait a minute, this doesn't have anything to do with Ren, does it?" you asked teasingly. A blush told you it did. You sighed. "Let me guess, Pirika," you said in a more serious tone. "You like him, don't you?"

"But you can't tell _anyone!_" she hissed. "Even though I didn't actually tell you, a promise is a promise!" She held out her pinky, which you took reluctantly with your own and shook.

After that, you didn't have the heart to tell her that you thought Ren liked you. It would just ruin her. But you had learned the general which-girl-likes-which-guy of the inn, which could come in handy later:

Anna seemed to be interested in her fiancé, which was good news, since they would eventually end up married one day. Tamao's tastes seemed to change pretty rapidly, as instead of stalking Yoh, like she had as a child, she was now thoroughly preoccupied with Horohoro. Lyserg's silver-haired visitor, Jeanne, had apparently fallen head-over-heels for her host when visiting. And Pirika, you got a horrid headache to even think about it, was infatuated with Ren. Funbari Onsen was turning into a passion pit!

**End Part VII.**


	8. Part VIII

**Part VIII: Of Chinese Dumplings and Inexperienced Kissers**

**Chapter i: Of Charred Salmon, Bicycles, and Stomach Problems**

Somehow, within the week following the laundry room incident, Pirika became unable to leave a twenty-foot radius of your body. And she was just as chatty as Ren had said; and maybe even more so. Even through the smoke alarm (caused to set off by a grease fire Horohoro had unsuspectingly caused while trying to help you fry some salmon) she still yapped on and on about this and that. That is, until Horo (driven to near insanity by the combination of her voice and beeping smoke alarm) had shooed her away using a potholder.

Horohoro grinned apologetically as you doused the still-flaming pan with baking soda. After the fire was successfully put out, Horo stood on the table and fanned the smoke alarm with the same potholder he had chased Pirika away with, thus ending the demonic beeping. You tiredly ran a hand through your hair and leaned against the counter as you watched the Ainu sit down at the kitchen table.

"From now on, Horohoro-san," you sighed. "_Please_ don't try to help me with dinner." Horo huffed and crossed his arms, mocking anger.

"Why not?" he pouted, sticking out his lower lip and trying to look sad.

"Because you'll screw it up," Ren grumbled as he leaned against the doorframe. Apparently, he had just finished training for the day, as he was missing his shirt and covered in a thin sheet of sweat, some of his bangs sticking to his forehead. You scowled as a drop of sweat made it way down his jaw line and onto the tiled floor. You had _just_ washed that floor! Now Ren was making _puddles_ on it!

"Eww, Ren! You're all sweaty!" Horo moaned. Apparently, he had seen the offending droplet as well, and was determined to take your side on that particular topic. Ren smirked.

"So what if I am?" he said smugly. With that, he shook his head violently, showering the pair of you with tiny drops of perspiration.

"Ren!" you whined, taking refuge behind an empty frying pan. "Don't do that! I'm _trying_ to make dinner! _And_ I _just_ washed the floor! Go outside if you're going to shake like a dog!" Ren stopped abruptly; he hadn't meant for his little rainstorm to hit you as well. He blushed fervently and slid silently out of the room.

"The _nerve_ of that guy! I can't believe he did something that _unclean_ while you were making dinner!" Horo declared loudly, a hint of a smile tickling his face. You had actually taken his side for once, so he was more jovial than usual as he watched you mop up the tiny puddles on the floor. You rolled your eyes.

"Right; and I suppose you dancing on the countertops in nothing but your underwear is much more sanitary," you huffed as you remembered the incident from a few nights ago.

"Well, I was happy!" Horo complained loudly. "And Ren just did that to piss me off! He's like that, you know!"

"No I'm not," Ren's voice drifted in from the bathroom as he turned on the shower. Horo's eyes widened.

"How could he hear that!" Horo half-hissed, half-yelled. Without even turning the water off, Ren poked his head in the kitchen.

"Because you're louder than a rock concert in a preschool room," he said in the same smart-assed way he always would to Horohoro. The bluenette scowled, but then stalked out of the room, clearly not being able to think of a comeback. Ren smirked, but you gave him a sharp glare for losing you your "helper," as Horo had called it. Now he and Ren would be at each others' throats for the rest of the evening. Ren, sensing your glare, then inched out of the kitchen to resume his shower.

You turned to face your ruins of the salmon that Horohoro had caught on fire. They were burned onto the iron skillet, and you knew that even though this was Horo's fault, you would be the one cleaning it up in the end. You _were_ still the maid, after all. But most of the residents in the Asakura household thought of you as more of a friend who just happened to be forced to wear a slutty maid's outfit for some unknown reason.

Taking the still-hot pan by the handle, you carried it over to the sink and promptly began to run cold water on it. After about thirty seconds or so, you heard a very started-sounding squawk from the bathroom. You shook your head as you realized that this house didn't have an electric water heater, therefore, you couldn't run two faucets at the same time without the water temperature being messed up. After a quick "Sorry, Ren!" you (using as little water as possible) began to wash the burned-on fish off the skillet.

Surprisingly enough, you managed to get all the fish off the pan. But not after about half an hour of scrubbing. And only just as you were rinsing off the iron skillet did Ren finally emerge from the shower, sporting only an annoyingly short towel and holding the clothes he had previously been wearing.

"What were you doing in there, Ren?" you asked, a hint of a giggle in your voice. "You took so long taking a shower, I thought you must've drowned." Ren turned bright red.

"Yeah, well… What do you know?" he snapped. Then he shoved the garments into your hands. "These need to be washed," he stated simply, then walked off.

"Okay…" you said softly. This was more of a comment to yourself than Ren.

"Katsumi," you heard a stern voice say. You turned around to see Anna, standing in her usual arms-crossed pose. "Weren't you making my dinner a while ago?" she demanded, her stomach giving a slight rumble. You smiled nervously.

"Yes, I was, Anna-san. But Horohoro-san caught the salmon on fire, and I'm afraid I've nothing else to make." Somehow, you knew that this wouldn't end up well.

"Well, you're just going to have to go get more," Anna said. You "irk"-ed.

"But Anna-san!" you said. "It's getting dark! I can't walk all the way to the market by myself when it's getting dark! I don't know what kind of crazy people are lurking in bushes and alleys just waiting to--!" Anna reached her hand out of the doorway, pulling a still-wet but clothed Ren in by the ear.

"That's what you've got Ren for," she said tiredly. Ren jerked his head out of Anna's iron grip.

"For what?" he demanded.

"You're taking Katsumi to the market," Anna said, clarifying the situation. Ren scowled.

"No I'm not," he protested.

(Go ahead in time about five minutes…)

Standing on the back pegs of the bike Ren was pedaling, you could see the red, throbbing handprint on the side of the spiked boy's face as you gripped his shoulders firmly, a basket hanging from your right wrist. Surprisingly, Anna had let you change out of the satin maid's dress before you left the house; and for that, you were thankful. If you had been wearing the dress, other pedestrians would be able to see all the way up your legs when the bike was moving, which was pretty much the whole time you were out.

It was a nice evening; the sky was a melting pot of warm colors, and it was still generally warm out, considering that it was early September. Little stars were making themselves noticeable in the swirling colors of the sky, and crickets were chirping like there was no end. Sighing contently, you loosened your grip on Ren's shoulders slightly. When you tried to sneak a peek at the attempted emotionless face of the boy in front of you, you saw a slight blush creeping up on his cheeks.

Soon enough, though, you began to just let your mind drift to some random thought about nothing, but that was abruptly cut short by Ren stopping suddenly in front of the market.

"Here we are," you heard him say (seeing as you were still behind him). You hopped swiftly off the bike and toddled off into the outdoor market, seeing as after Ren put the bike somewhere, he could find you in about ten seconds.

After almost forgetting what you had gone to the market to get, you began to browse through the various foods until you and Ren met up again. Somehow, he had managed to pile an almost obscene amount of peaches in his arms, and he gratefully set them into the basket hanging from your wrist.

"What're these for?" you asked, trying to figure out what anyone would need _that_ many peaches for.

"For eating," he replied simply, edging off to a refrigerator full of milk, which set in a building missing most of the front.

"No one can eat that many peaches before they spoil," you remarked. He looked thoughtful.

"Then you can cook something with them," he said, opening the first door of the refrigerator and pulling out a few glass bottles of milk. They clinked against each other dangerously, threatening to break and spill all over Ren.

Edging nervously into the three-sided building, you eyed the display of meat. The flesh of different animals was set up in a glass counter on a mountain of ice, little sprigs of random herbs stuck here and there into the display. Ren silently placed the milk into the basket, much like a small child sneaking candy into his mother's shopping cart would. Before you could complain about how heavy the basket was getting, you saw Ren's eyes light up ((Think the background picture of Ren in episode 52 when Team Ren assembles the three oversoul-things…)) when he saw a pile of odd-looking meat with a tiny "35 percent off!" sign stuck into it, laying temptingly in the corner of the display.

"We need some of that," he commanded the man behind the counter, jabbing his finger at the meat behind the glass. The man nodded, that sly "you-picked-the-right-thing" vendor's smile upon his face as he wrapped the meat up in some white paper. You cringed, knowing how much all this extra food would cost and knowing that most of it would be coming out of your meager salary. And besides, this meat Ren was purchasing for you wasn't even fish, let alone salmon.

Surprisingly enough, Ren paid for the food, including the odd meat ("Wow! That was considerate, Ren!"), and the two of you were on your way back to the house. By now, though, it was almost completely dark. The stars were showing off their sparkle as best they could, but they were often drowned out by the annoyingly bright streetlights. Ren scowled at them whenever the pair of you entered the circle of light beneath them, and you could feel the muscles in his shoulders tense ever so slightly underneath your hands.

When you finally reached the Asakura residence, Anna seemed to be annoyed that the pair of you had taken so long, and practically kicked you into the kitchen to restart making dinner. After asking Ren what exactly to do with the new meat, you were informed to make it into Chinese-style dumplings. What a pain in the ass that was! They took forever to make, and in the end, they were tiny. So you had to make a ton of them. You silently vowed never to make them again, as Anna was furious with you for taking so long.

After taking forever to make, though, the odd dumplings were a hit. You watched a little angrily from the tableside as your hour and a half of hard work was consumed in about ten minutes. Yet no one seemed to know what they were eating, so it was too risky to ask if they liked it or if they were just starved to death at the end of the day. After dinner, as you were picking up plates, you figured it was safe to ask if they liked what you had cooked.

"So, what did you guys think of the dumplings I made?" you asked, narrowly missing a teacup with the plate you were maneuvering to the pile in your arms. A chorused reply of "Oh, it was great!" and the like echoed around the table.

"I've never tasted anything like it, Katsumi," Yoh said thoughtfully after taking a sip of tea. "What was in it?" You "irk"-ed, not knowing what to say, then laughed nervously.

"Umm, I don't really know," you laughed. "Ren was the one who picked it, not me." Silently, all eyes shot to a slightly food-intoxicated Ren. Silence.

"Well, what was it, Ren?" Yoh asked, clearly sensing that the Chinese boy had been nodding off a little when the question was asked. Quickly snapping awake, he replied:

"We have civet all the time back home. I don't see why you guys think it's such a great thing."

You sat out on the front lawn, staring at the stars and trying to rid yourself of all the ill-looking faces that had stared your way when the main course of the meal had been revealed. It wasn't like it was _your_ fault that they had all eaten civet. They could have at least asked what it was before they shoveled it down their throats. But you were a bit glad afterwards that you hadn't eaten any dinner; you were probably the only one (besides Ren, of course) who wouldn't be having a date with the Pepto-Bismol bottle tonight. You laughed lightly at your half-formed thought, then rolled over onto your side, the light autumn breeze blowing up your re-donned maid's dress and making you shiver a little.

From your spot on the lawn, you could hear some of what was going on in most of the bedrooms through the open windows; voices talking and such. Lyserg (who's room was the closest to your stargazing location) emitted a long, miserable moan, and you saw Morphine's slight pink glow floating around the room, trying to communicate without speaking. Other than that, though, things going on in the other rooms were audible, but not distinguishable. You heard muffled voices coming from the other side of the house. Deciding it was getting late, you got up off the grass and went to bed.

**End Chapter i.**

**Chapter ii: Of Giggling Boys and Helpful Books**

Yoh sighed, leaning back against the trunk of the tree in his backyard, Manta lolling not to far away in the grass. The moonlight illuminated their faces just enough so that their expressions could be vaguely made out. Manta, using his large book as a makeshift pillow, rolled over onto his stomach to face Yoh.

"Why do you keep sighing like that, Yoh-kun?" Manta asked. It had been the fifth time in three minutes that Yoh had heaved a sigh, and since Manta was Yoh's best friend, he figured that he should know about whatever was going on in Yoh's head. Yoh sighed again. It was really starting to bother Manta, but he would never admit it.

"Manta, if I ask you something, will you promise not to laugh?" Yoh asked seriously. Manta cocked his head to one side.

"Of course," the tiny blonde answered. "Isn't that what best friends do?" Yoh smiled, realizing that they had been talking in questions the whole time.

"Alright then," Yoh said, breaking the pattern. Manta tried to make eye contact, but the taller boy looked away. "This is just a hypothetical question, by the way," he added guiltily before the question was asked. "If I wanted to kiss a girl, how would I go about doing it?" Manta smiled lightly. He couldn't imagine Yoh kissing a girl. Then again, he couldn't imagine Yoh kissing anyone.

"Why?" Manta asked. "Are you finally going to give in and kiss Anna goodnight?" he joked, the tiny sadistic side of him shining through. Yoh scowled.

"No, I was just wondering how I would do it if I wanted to." Yoh didn't even want to think about kissing Anna, but a certain insufficiently-paid employee frolicked through his mind, the wind blowing up her maid's dress in a Marilyn Monroe-ish fashion.

"I'll check my book," Manta said. This was his answer to any and every problem. After searching for a few minutes, he held the book open so Yoh could see the page. It was labeled 'How To Give A Perfect Kiss.' Yoh laughed out loud when he saw this. This book really had _everything_ in it!

"Read it to me," Yoh said, blushing a little. Manta nodded.

"Run your tongue over your lips before you kiss. Having slightly moist lips makes it easier to move your lips over your partner's and gives you both a more pleasant experience."

Yoh giggled madly.

"Stand close to your partner. As the two of you move closer together, tilt your head slightly. If you can see which way your partner's head is tilting, tilt your head slightly in the opposite direction."

Yoh, still giggling, tipped over onto his back. Even though he found this funny, he was trying to soak it up like a sponge.

"Just before your lips meet, close your eyes. Some people prefer to leave their eyes open during the kiss. But until you know what your partner prefers, it's best to close your eyes."

Yoh made a mental note to "lose" this book for Manta later.

"Open your mouth slightly and place your lips over your partner's lips. Do not hold your breath! Breathe through your nose. As your lips meet, press them gently over your partner's. You may wish to move your lips in a slow, circular motion or just leave them still over your partner's."

Yes, he would definitely "lose" this book. And it wouldn't be found until well after next Easter.

"Yoh-kun?" Manta asked. "Should I go on to French kissing, or stop?"

"Go on, go on!" Yoh urged, trying not to sound desperate.

"Okay, then… Open your lips over your partner's slightly more than you would during a regular kiss. This makes it easier to place your tongue in your partner's mouth."

"Uh-huh…" Yoh gulped, trying to keep the evil images of himself and a very sexy-looking Katsumi Frenching on a deserted beach out of his mind.

"Place the tip of your tongue on the tip of your partner's tongue. Don't force your tongue too far into their mouth. If you wish, you can play with their tongue by circling theirs with your own. Have fun with it. Explore."

Yoh nodded. "Is that it?" he asked.

"Yup," Manta responded. After a minute of silence, Manta spoke again. "I get the impression that you were thinking about Katsumi, weren't you?" Yoh blushed, then began pulling at the grass, not wanting to answer.

"Uh."

"You were. I know you better than you think, Yoh."

Somewhere off in the wilderness of rural Japan, Hao and Opacho sat in front of a campfire. The pair's eyes were glued to the campfire, watching the magic images of Yoh and Manta's current learning activities in the flames. All the while, Hao and his androgynous little sidekick were laughing their heads off at Yoh's desperateness. Hao grinned at the fire.

"Gee, Otôto," he said to the silent moving pictures in the flames. "I never knew you were that desperate for the girl. Now I want her even more than before."

**End Chapter ii.**

**End Part VIII.**


	9. Part IX

**Part IX: Of Laundry Rooms, Perfect Kisses, and Social Dilemmas**

The next morning, you woke up unnaturally early. It might have been the fact that you slipped out of your bed and hit your head on the floor during your wonderful dream of eating an entire room full of chocolate cake, but you were okay with that, since there seemed to be a mountain of laundry to do with your name on it.

'Laundry is such a hassle,' you thought irritably as you emptied the pockets of a pair of Yoh's pants. 'The least Yoh could do would be to take the stuff out of his pockets before giving his pants to me!' Just as you were about to stuff the pants into the washer, a small, folded piece of paper fell onto the floor at your feet. At first, you pretended not to notice it, but after listening to the silent house for a few moments, you bent down and picked it up. You knew you weren't supposed to invade your employers' privacy, but this was probably just a receipt from a convenience store or something. But just to make sure of what it was, you unfolded the paper silently and read the heading.

'How To Give A Perfect Kiss.'

You smiled, trying to suppress a small giggle. _Where_ did Yoh find this? Obviously, he had looked long and hard, since this wasn't something one would come across every day. And when the brunette had found it, he seemed to have been in a hurry, as the side of the paper was jagged; as if it had been ripped from a book. After reading the page over several times, you flipped it over. It had various passages labeled 'French Kissing,' 'Suck Kissing,' and so on. Becoming slightly startled by this, you folded it back up and set it onto the edge of the top of the dryer so that you could finish reading later.

'That was really weird,' you thought. Why would _Yoh_ have this? And, why would Yoh _want_ this? He doesn't seem to like Anna very much, so why would he have been planning to kiss her? They _are_ engaged, but…--Wait a minute!

"Oh crap…" you moaned, instantly getting the picture. "It's for me-e-e-e…!" you fake-sobbed, smacking your head against the wall.

"What's for you?" a voice drifted from the doorway. Being in the overly-emotional mood you were in at that exact moment, you "WAH!"-ed and flailed around momentarily. A yukata-clad Ren was leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed and hair tousled. Apparently, he had just woken up; he didn't appear to be a morning person. But, then again, he didn't seem to really be an anything person. You attempted a smile in his direction before answering.

"Oh, it's nothing," you lied as you tried to hide the folded piece of paper by backing up into the dryer. "Hey, could you go plug in the waffle iron for me? I promised Horohoro-san that I would make him waffles for breakfast." Anything to get rid of Ren so you could hide Yoh's paper; you didn't want him to think that it was yours, after all!

"Why the hell did you promise him waffles?" Ren asked, not moving.

"It's sort of an apology for last night's civet," you said, grabbing onto the paper square behind your back so you could hide it as soon as Ren left. Ren nodded, but didn't budge other than that. Then he eyed you questioningly as you fidgeted with the paper.

"What are you hiding?" he asked suddenly. You scolded yourself mentally for grabbing onto the paper; now he would think you needed help kissing somebody. It wasn't like you had _experience_ or anything, but you certainly didn't need advice from a crumpled up piece of paper.

"I-It's nothing!" you stuttered. Ren didn't seem to believe you, as he stuck out his hand for you to place the offending item in. But, all in all, he had a right to do so; you weren't allowed to hide anything from your employer. For all he knew, what you were holding could be a grenade ready to explode.

"Give it," he demanded. You flinched as you held out the paper, now balled up in a tight wad from your fidgeting with it. Thundering footsteps were heard somewhere on the upper level of the house, but you paid them no attention as you sorrowfully handed over Yoh's little secret. Ren smiled. "Good girl," he said victoriously as he uncrumpled the paper. You scowled momentarily at the "good girl" remark, then tried to inch your way out the door.

Ren's eyes scanned the paper, then he turned as read as a tomato. You blanched when he looked from the paper to you.

"I found it in Yoh-san's pocket when I was emptying them before--" you tried, but Ren stuck up his hand to silence you, re-reading the sheet of paper over and over again. Then he looked up at you again, though his eyes were softer than before, and took a few steps towards you, so that you were now almost face-to-face. Shooting one last fleeting glance at the paper, Ren let it flutter to the floor before wrapping an arm out around your waist drawing you closer to him.

"Tell me if this is perfect," he murmured, quoting the page on the floor, then he pressed his lips to yours shyly. You gasped silently; so many different alarms were going off in your head, though the love theme from 'Romeo and Juliet' was drowning them all out. What if someone saw you! --You could hear Pirika yelling at Horohoro somewhere in the house, but it was pretty distant. Having either of the Ainus see you like this would probably fall into first place on your 'Why I'd Like To Quit My Job' list; Horohoro would harass you about it day and night, and Pirika would never forgive you for locking lips with her crush.

Feeling Ren run his tongue across your lip snapped you right out of your half-formed thoughts, and you instinctively opened your mouth a bit, allowing him full access to you. He shyly inched his tongue into your mouth, and you shivered slightly, not moving an inch. But apparently, he was as afraid of this situation as you were, as you could feel the arm he had wrapped around your waist was trembling. You smiled a little as you draped your arms over his shoulders, and he relaxed slightly. You would have, also, but the Ainu-made shrieks and footsteps were approaching ever-closer by the second.

Not knowing what else to do, you attempted to break the kiss to inform him of the coming intruders. But when you tried to push him off lightly, he seemed not to notice. And your incomprehensible muffled moans (meant to be words) weren't getting the message across either. But what would break the kiss was a pair of sky blue blurs running past the door, who both did a double take and shot back to the door to see what was going on.

The more feminine of the Ainu blurs (who had been trying to retrieve a stolen hairbrush from her brother) gave a small squeak from the doorway, which roused Ren from his previous actions. Blushing profusely, the pair of you shot apart and began to stutter explanations, or (in Ren's case) death threats. Horo appeared to be slightly distressed, while Pirika was just plain stunned. She stood in the doorway, mouth slightly open and eyes wide and shining with unshed tears.

"Katsumi…" she squeaked, shaking her head from side to side. "How could you…? Even after I told you… about how… how I felt…" She couldn't continue stuttering. She ran off down the hall, tears falling freely from her face onto the wooden floor. The remaining Ainu gave Ren a look of disgust before running down the hall after his sister.

You sighed, leaning against the dryer and sliding down the smooth white surface onto the floor. There, you sat curled up in a ball with your arms resting on your knees and your face hidden in your arms. You heard Ren sit down next to you, probably in a similar position.

"Well, I'm fired for sure," you mumbled into your forearms. "Anna-san really won't want me around after what just happened."

"Why's that?" Ren asked.

"Because she thinks I'm a slut," you whined. Even though you couldn't see him, you could tell Ren was smiling a bit.

"Yeah, that dress is pretty bad," he said, fingering the lace at the bottom of your skirt. Apparently, after the kiss, Ren seemed to be more comfortable around you.

"It's a uniform," you said. After a moment of silence, you spoke again. "Should I go apologize to Pirika?" you asked, turning your head so you could see Ren, who stretched out his legs a little in front of him.

"Not now," he said. "You're probably the last person she wants to see right now. You'd better let her cool off a bit; I'm sure Horohoro will make her feel better." You gave another sigh, then felt tears well up a bit in your eyes; you were sure that you were going to lose your job, your home, and your friends. Before either of you could say another word, you began to cry softly. Ren looked a bit concerned.

"Don't worry, Katsumi," he said in a stern voice. "It's not like we actually did anything wrong or immoral. Teens kiss all the time." Ren was right; teens _did_ kiss all the time. Only, they usually wait until they're alone… But you _were_ alone…

"But for all Pirika knows, we could have a heated sex life full of nights of endless pleasure and -- what's so funny?" You glared at Ren, who had snorted in that annoying Ren-way that he did when he was trying to suppress a laugh; usually that particular honor was reserved for Horohoro, but today, you were the lucky winner.

"Your antics," he said, a hint of a playful smirk lurking at the corners of his mouth. "If we _did_ have a heated sex life and so on like you said, wouldn't Pirika _hear_ us?" You blushed, the tears in your eyes quickly disappearing. You smiled sadly.

"You're right, but I'm still fired when Anna-san finds out." Ren snorted again.

"No you're not," he said. You blinked.

"Why? Pirika will tell her and--"

"I'll talk to Pirika. She won't tell Anna if I ask her not to."

"Alright…" you sighed. Silence.

"So…" Ren started, blushing a tiny bit. "Was it perfect?" he asked in a Ren-ish tone. You smiled thoughtfully for a moment before shooting a quick glance at the crumpled sheet of paper that had caused you so much internal grief in such a short period of time.

"Yes…" you lied. Of _course_ it hadn't been perfect, you twit! If it were to be perfect, Pirika and Horo wouldn't have interrupted!

"For some reason, I don't believe you, Katsumi," Ren said, slowly shaking his side. "But we can always try again…" And with that, he gathered you into his arms and pressed his mouth to yours. This time, though, he seemed to be more confident in himself; he was not shaking, and he seemed to be a bit more rough, as he forcefully shoved his tongue into your mouth. The two of you carried on for a little while longer, but when the sound of a certain blonde itako stomping down the stairs reached your ears, you were forced to detach your mouths from each other.

"I think it really was perfect that time," you said softly as you combed your fingers through your now-tousled hair. Ren nodded, blushing furiously as he retied his yukata, which had all but come off in the previous encounter. Then his stomach gave a loud growl, and you smiled.

"Didn't you say something earlier about waffles?" he asked, currently feeling more social than he had in quite a few years. You smiled, then tutted mockingly, shaking a finger in Ren's face.

"Yes, but you forgot to plug in the waffle iron," you fake-scolded. Ren scowled.

"In case you didn't notice, I was busy wreaking social havoc with you." You laughed a little, then pointed in the direction of the kitchen.

"Okay, now that we're done sucking face," you started, watching Ren blush even more than before, "Go plug in the waffle iron. I still owe Horo-san waffles." Ren stood up and started to leave the laundry room, but you stopped him by tugging on the hem of his yukata. "And drop the social mood. Anna will think something's up if you strut around here like Mr. Sunshine."

"Right," Ren said, before securing his signature scowl back at home on his face as he walked down to the kitchen.

Well, great. You were going to have a lot on your hands if anyone found out about your first kissing session on the job. So, you made up you mind then and there that this whole incident would remain a secret from everybody else.

You sighed and looked over at the pair of Yoh's pants that you were about to wash before this all started. You wondered how Yoh would take it if he found out about this. He _did_ go to all that trouble to get the page from the book just for you…

**End Part IX. **


	10. Part X

**Part X: Of Waffles, Sibling Rivalries, and Gossip**

When you entered the kitchen to make Horo's waffles, you noticed the kitchen was not as lively as it usually was every morning. That might have been due to the fact that only Lyserg and Tamao sat at the table, conversing quietly with each other. Both of them being as soft-spoken as they were, it made it slightly difficult to understand what they were saying as you mixed the batter for the waffles. Ren had taken the liberty of plugging in the waffle iron, but he was nowhere to be found.

'He's probably talking to Pirika for me,' you thought, pouring some batter into the waffle iron. Then you closed the lid thoughtfully, letting your eyes wander out the kitchen window. Half-expecting to see something out of the ordinary, you were slightly disappointed when the only thing you saw was a small squirrel running up a tree with an acorn in its mouth. How simple it would be to be a squirrel... Not having to worry which other squirrels were mad at you... After hearing the doorbell ring, you sighed.

"That must be Jeanne-sama and Marco-san!" Lyserg yelled happily, then ran off to answer the door, followed closely by Tamao. You doubted that she even knew Lyserg's guests, but greeting them at the door was considered polite, and the pink-haired fortune teller would risk life and limb to be polite. Turning back to the window, you let out a small squawk when, instead of the squirrel, stood the shawl-donned boy from earlier; Hao.

"Kon'nichi wa, Katsumi-chan," he said happily, resting his elbows on the windowsill. "How's my dearest otôto?" Was this guy _really_ your employers' worst enemy?

"Yoh's fine," you said, trying to figure out what could possibly be evil about him. Oh right; the flames. How could you overlook the fact that he had disappeared in a burst of flames?

"That's good," Hao said, resting his cheek on his forearms and looking into the room with curious eyes; an innocent gesture nonetheless. "What's that?" he asked, nodding to the waffle iron. You blinked. He certainly wasn't as smart as everyone had said he was.

"It's a waffle iron," you said. "You make waffles in it." Of _course!_ He wasn't dumb; he'd just had no experience with modern kitchen appliances whatsoever!

"'Waffle'," he repeated. Then he smiled hugely. "That's a really funny word, you know that?" You giggled softly. "What do you do with these 'waffles'?" he asked, cutely staring up at you through the window. You resisted the urge to haul him in through the window and hug him to death.

"You eat them," you replied after hearing his stomach growl loudly.

"Can I have one?" Hao asked, tracing a small circle on the windowsill with his finger and giving you big doe eyes. You cringed, trying to fend off the cuteness; but alas, you failed completely.

"Okay, just go over to the back door and I'll--" Somehow, it didn't surprise you too much that Hao chose to leap through the window instead of using the door like a normal person would. Cringing slightly as he landed with a soft thud next to you, you opened the lid of the waffle iron and revealed the large, golden brown pastry. Hao, who had scampered over to where you were, gasped childishly as he leaned over the counter to get a better look at the waffle.

"Wow," he breathed as you speared the waffle with a fork and directed it onto a plate. You then shoved the plate into his hands and doused the waffle with some maple syrup, which you had pulled from seemingly nowhere. You sat him down at the kitchen table, fearing it would be too risky to seat him in the dining room.

After consuming the entire circumference of waffle, Hao leaned back in his chair, tipping it so that the front legs no longer reached the ground. You cringed upon hearing the chair creak slightly under Hao's weight. Not wanting the chair to break and cause a ruckus, you protested quietly.

"Hao-san, could you not tip in the chair? It might break." Hao blinked, then allowed the chair to fall back to the floor, making a soft clunk. Hao looked at the syrup-coated plate in front of him, not knowing what to do.

"Where does this go?" he asked, holding up the plate and causing the syrup to drip down his thumb, which he promptly stuck into his mouth after you took the plate from him. Before you put the plate in the sink, you inquired:

"Do you want another waffle?" Hao's eyes lit up in a childlike fashion, and he grinned.

"You mean I can have another?" he asked. You _really_ couldn't see how this guy was evil in any way.

"You can have as many as you want," you replied, watching his expression reach an all-time happy. Then he thought for a minute.

"Can I make one?" he asked, cocking his head to the side. Somehow, you knew that Hao would make a mess, but you couldn't resist that adorable stare. You nodded, and handed him the bowl of batter to pour into the waffle iron.

"Just pour it in slowly," you instructed, sensing his gung-ho attitude about making waffles. After the waffle iron had been filled, you then showed him how to close the lid. He giggled a bit when the batter sizzled after the lid was closed, but his laughter was quickly interrupted when a small child appeared at the window, jumping up and down so he could see into the kitchen. It was remarkable that a child that small could jump so high, as the window was almost five feet off the ground.

"Hao-sama!" the child called into the window, mid-jump, instantly rousing Hao from his waffle-making actions. "Opacho--" he disappeared under the window, only to appear a second later. "--saw the--" And again. "--X-LAWS!" And again. "Hao-sama--" And again. "and Opacho--" And again. "--should--" And again. "--get going!" Even though the child had stopped speaking, it still continued bouncing up and down outside the window. Hao looked annoyed.

"Opacho, I'm making waffles right now!" he huffed, watching the small cloaked child bounce. "Can't this wait!" The child shook its head, and Hao placed a hand on his hip. "Alright then, Opacho. Where are they?" he asked angrily.

"They're--" Bounce. "--on their--" Bounce. "--way--" Bounce. "--into--" Bounce. "-the kitchen--" Bounce. "--right now!" Hao then looked around the room before walking over to the window, grabbing the child by its shawl mid-bounce, and pulling it into the room. Just as he did so, Lyserg and his two usual guests entered the kitchen.

"HAO!" the three of them howled, causing you to cringe. The tall blonde man pulled out a handgun and pointed it at Hao's head, seething. Hao watched coolly as Lyserg began yelling things along the line of "parent-killing bastard" in his direction, smirking when Lyserg had used up all the curses and bad names he had thought up, leaving him sputtering incoherent syllables. But the most the hoary-haired girl did was scowl in Hao's direction, but she still looked as sweet as ever when she did.

"Kon'nichi wa minna," Hao said to them as if they were acquaintances of his. Somehow, all the yelling of Lyserg and his guest had roused Yoh from wherever he happened to be at the moment, and he glared angrily at Hao. Then he noticed you, standing about three feet away from Hao, waffle batter in hand.

"Katsumi!" Yoh yelled, drawing Harusame from some unknown place. "Get away from there! It's too dangerous!" You took a few paces back, but when Hao turned and looked at you with big, sad brown eyes, you stopped. Yoh then looked at you with the exact same stare, then yelled another command. "Katsumi, go outside, _now!_ You'll be a lot safer far away from Hao!" You took one last fleeting glance around the now-crowded kitchen, before turning and running out the back door.

You were greeted by a chilly autumn wind, which blew a few dead leaves through the yard. You heard quite a lot of new voices yelling (including Horohoro's) and banging around. Wanting to know what was going on, you ran over to the kitchen window and peeked inside. Just as you had done so, a flash illuminated the room, and Yoh came hurdling through the open window and landed with a thud on the dying grass, a small bit of dust rising up and sticking to his sweaty face. Amidamaru burst out of the sword and hovered over Yoh, who had a large burn on his chest.

"Yoh-dono!" the samurai cried. "Are you alright!" Yoh sat up shakily, a trembling hand clasping the charred skin of his chest.

"Y-Yeah," he mumbled. "I'm f-fine." You watched in shock as he tried to stand up, using the sword to stable himself, but then fell back to the ground with a whine, clutching his scorched torso as if that would make the pain go away.

"Yoh-san!" you squealed, scampering over to brunette. "What happened!" It was obvious that Hao had launched some sort of fire attack at Yoh, but what had happened exactly was a mystery. Yoh looked up at you with glassy eyes, not wanting to appear weak in any way.

"Hao happened..." he mumbled quietly, then Lyserg was flung out the same window Yoh had departed from and landed dangerously close to Yoh. You noticed that Lyserg was generally burn-free, but he was infuriated beyond all belief. He stood up, growling curses, and began to brush himself off hastily, grasping his slightly-cracked dowsing pendulum in one hand. Then he launched himself back at the window, but collided full-force with Horohoro, who seemed to have jumped out the window by his own free will, as if to lead Hao outside.

Whether it was intentional or not, Hao followed the ikapsui-armed Ainu out the window and landed gracefully next to Yoh, who flinched as if he was afraid of being stepped on. Hao smirked down at his twin.

"You see, dearest otôto," he said coolly. "That's what you get for disturbing me when I'm making waffles." He placed his foot on Yoh's burned chest, causing the younger of the two to cry out softly. "Don't _ever_ do that again!" he yelled, losing his cool demeanor for the first time around you and scuffing his foot roughly across Yoh's chest, ripping away the burned skin and making his little brother lose himself completely in the pain.

Tears washed away paths of dust on Yoh's face, and you watched in horror each time Hao repeated the cruel scuffing action, eliciting a heart-wrenching cry from the smaller boy. That is, until the small child known as Opacho appeared in the window, the waffle iron and the bowl of batter piled in its tiny arms.

"Opacho has the stuff you wanted, Hao-sama," it piped, jumping down to the ground and watching the batter in the bowl slosh precariously. Hao smiled victoriously, then spit into Yoh's open wound and turned to Opacho, who had scuttled over next to him.

"Spirit of Fire," Hao commanded. A huge, glowing red human-ish figure took form in the yard, bumping a tree and causing it to go up in flames. You gasped, unable to move. By now, most of the tenants in the inn had made their way to outside using the back door, and were gathering to watch the fight that was going on. Except Ren. He was nowhere to be seen. But without your noticing it (you were too amazed by Spirit of Fire to notice anything), Hao had approached you.

He then picked you up bridal-style and began to walk over to Spirit of Fire. You, of course, began to flail mercilessly at this and shriek protests as loud as you possibly could.

"Katsumi," Hao said sternly, trying to keep a firm grip on you so you wouldn't fall. "I'm taking you away to be my Shaman Queen and cook waffles for me forever and ever, so could you _please_ stop giving me hell! This is _supposed_ to be enjoyable!" You shot him a glare of disgust, but he leapt many feet into the air toward Spirit of Fire's upturned palm.

"Katsumi!" you heard Yoh yell through his tears of pain. You felt a pang of guilt jolt through you, knowing how mush effort it must be taking for him to remain conscious, let alone cry out to you.

But mid-leap, Hao jerked to a stop as if something was pulling on him. In fact, something was; Ren was standing out on the limb of a tree, a large chunk of Hao's hair being firmly grasped in his fist, and the blade of his spear mere inches from the coffee-colored tresses.

"No way in _hell_ are you taking Katsumi," Ren said. "So if you want to keep your precious hair attached to your head, I suggest that you put her down and go back to wherever the hell you came from." Hao looked even more mad than before as he pondered his options.

"Fine," he said after a while. And with that, he let go of you. You began to fall in what felt like painfully sluggish slow motion, and Horohoro was hovering around beneath you acting as if he was going to catch you. Somehow, you landed _on_ Horohoro instead of in his arms as he had meant. The pair of you crashed to the ground, and you got up, groaning a little as you rubbed your head. Then you looked up at Hao, who cast you a mournful gaze just before he, Opacho, and Spirit of Fire took off into the sky. Then, you remembered something...

"Yoh-san!" you yelled, running over to the sniffling brunette on the ground. Apparently, Anna wasn't as caring for her fiancé as you thought she would be, as she was glaring down at him and muttering something about him being weak. Somehow, you felt like this was all your fault. But then again, you _had_ let Hao in, and you _had_ been making waffles with him. You just hoped that something like this would never happen again...

Yoh gazed up at you with the same doe eyes Hao had used earlier. You felt so awful about what had happened...

"Katsumi..." he muttered. "You're still here... Hao didn't get away with you..." You knelt down next to him and shook your head. Then, you felt a hand on your shoulder. You looked up into the face of none other than Horohoro, who had Kororo sitting on his shoulder.

"We'd better get some ice on that burn," he said to no one in particular as he eyed Yoh's chest nervously. Blood had begun to seep out where Hao had ripped away the burned skin, and it was now staining Yoh's white shirt a brownish-red as it mixed with dust on the ground. Trying to remember as much as you could from the First Aid course your teachers had forced you into taking last year, you said softly to Yoh:

"Okay, I wanna make sure this isn't a really bad burn, so I want you to tell me if this hurts or not." With that, you gingerly pressed down on part of the wound with a few of your fingers. Yoh let out a painfully loud wail when you did this, and you felt him grab your free hand as hard as he could. New tears formed in his eyes, and you looked guiltily up at Anna, who seemed to be enjoying the pain Yoh was being put through. You frowned slightly, poking a few different places on Yoh's chest, each educing a new yelp or moan. You sighed, trying to get the feeling back into your left hand from when Yoh had grabbed it.

"Well," you said, feeling mighty professional at the moment. "You don't have any third-degree burns, so we don't have to rush and call an ambulance. But we should get some ice on that, and we'll call the doctor in a little while." Then you began showing Horohoro and Kororo where to form ice.

After a few more yelps from Yoh, Ren and Horohoro had taken the liberty of carrying him up to his room, and Anna had called a friend who happened to be a doctor. Lyserg and his blonde guest were having "man-talk" in the kitchen, and the silver-haired girl disappeared into the onsen with the other females of the house.

Things had calmed down quite a bit since that morning, and you were forced to resume your duties as the maid. Anna had instructed you to wash the floor around the onsen, and even though she and the other females had been lounging in there for the past hour, she made you wash it with them still in there.

Somehow, though, the other girls had no idea you were there. It might have been because they had their backs to you, but you thought it had more to do with the uncontrollable feminine giggles they were emitting. Pretty soon, though, the topic of their conversation had shifted from the waffle incident this morning, to who they secretly adored, to first impressions of the other tenants of the inn, to who they secretly adored (again), then to the kissing incident that morning...

"...And onii-chan and I saw them making out like they were the first ones who'd ever done it, right there in the laundry room," Pirika said. This was followed by three overly-done gasps of social horror.

"I've noticed that Yoh hasn't been paying as much attention to you as he should, Anna," Tamao said, breaking her "vow of silence," as Ren had called it. "Well, ever since Katsumi got here."

"And I caught her running around here in nothing but a towel the other day," Anna informed the others. You were starting to become slightly annoyed.

"What did you do?" Pirika inquired curiously.

"I gave her a stern talking-to," Anna said. "Do you know how fast I'd fire her if we didn't really need her help around here?" the blonde asked, not expecting an answer. Jeanne nodded.

"Yes, and Lyserg's been acting very strange lately -- preoccupied, almost. It's like he doesn't care for me anymore." she said, playing with a bit of her silver hair. The other girls nodded.

Things continued like this for a little while longer before you stormed out of the onsen, slamming the sliding door behind you, and possibly bringing into light that you had heard the whole conversation.

**End Part X.**


	11. Part XI

**Part XI: Of Invalids, Catfights, and Betrothals**

Huffing as you continued your angry walk down the hall, you either kicked aside random objects that were in your path, or batted them away with the mop you were wielding from washing the onsen's floor. Horo, hearing your approach, appeared in one of the doorways, ready to start trying to win you back from Ren. But when he saw the malicious glare you threw his way, he squeaked and disappeared into a different room. He obviously knew there would be fireworks if you met up with anybody, and he was _not_ about to let you explode in his face.

"Katsumi," the voice of the one and only Tao Ren rang out from somewhere ahead of you. (You had your eyes glued to the floor.) Looking up into the catlike golden eyes, you scowled harder than before. "Katsumi," he repeated, a little more annoyance in his tone. Instead of answering, you shoved past the Chinese teen, knocking the glass milk bottle he had been holding out of his hand, allowing it to shatter in the floor in a puddle of shimmering whiteness on the floor. Much to your surprise, he grasped your wrist and jerked you back towards him with much more force than was necessary.

"What?" you grumbled, more of a command than a question. Ren grasped your wrist harder.

"You know, I _was_ going to ask you to come for a walk with me, but seeing as how you shoved past me and broke my milk bottle, you're just going to have to stay and clean it up." You huffed and slapped the mop down into the puddle, splashing milk onto everything within five feet of you. Ren hopped back, narrowly avoiding the barrage of creamy white droplets destined for his pants.

"Katsumi, you'd better not let Anna see you in such a bad mood; she'll pitch you out," Ren said, disappearing into one of rooms of the inn. The ease at which someone could be eluded at the inn was beginning to bother you a little bit.

You silently continued your journey to the kitchen, and when you finally reached your destination, you found it deserted. You made dinner as quickly as you could, making absolutely sure to slam each of the cabinet doors as you closed them. But surprisingly, you had only managed to break one glass object; which happened to be a jar of mayonnaise that wouldn't open despite the unnatural levels of female testosterone pumping through your system. Upon realizing that Yoh could not attend dinner due to the large and painful burn on his chest, you prepared a tray for the injured boy.

When Horohoro had been lured into the kitchen by the aroma of freshly cooked food, he screeched that it was time to eat, thus assembling a majority of the residents at the dining room table. You scowled at the girls, who were still wet and giggling from the onsen. Somehow, you felt it necessary to spit into Anna's tea before you presented it to her, and therefore did so, smirking ever so slightly as you presented it to her. Then, remembering the charred brunette on the upper level of the house, you excused yourself from serving duties and walked steadily up the stairs, tray in hand.

Knocking gently on Yoh's bedroom door before opening it, you slid in unnoticed, as the singed teen was fast asleep. A note with instructions from the doctor lay on the bedside table, along with several bottles of God-knows-what and a heaping pile of new bandages. Quickly reading the note over (which was addressed to you, for some unknown reason), you poked the inactive brunette to alert him of your presence. He groaned and rolled over onto his side, then rolled right back due to the large blister that was forming across his torso.

"I've got your dinner," you said, motioning to the tray at the foot of the bed. Yoh smiled weakly.

"That's good," he said softly. "Anna hasn't let me have anything besides painkillers since this morning, so this'll be nice," he added, trying desperately to sit up. Apparently, he had tried to shield himself from Hao's attacks using his arms, as most of his upper body was bandaged. You twitched, thinking about how much pain he must be in. Once he had gotten himself correctly positioned, you placed the tray on his knees so he could reach it. He attempted a goofy grin as he held up his hands, which were bandaged up like mittens.

"There's no way I'll be able to use any chopsticks, Katsumi," he chuckled, raising his eyebrows a little. You sighed and scooted up closer to him, taking the chopsticks in one hand and plucking a random piece of meat from the plate. You directed the meat over to Yoh's open mouth, poked it in quickly, and then returned the chopsticks to the plate for more. Your hands shook slightly as you repeated the act again and again, afraid you would somehow harm the blistered brunette, either by dropping the chopsticks onto his charred chest, or (strangely enough) shove the chopsticks down his throat. But sure enough, you did neither, and soon Yoh's plate was cleared.

"That was a really nice dinner, Katsumi," Yoh commented, grinning brightly at the comfort of a full stomach. You smiled back, reaching for the note from the doctor, who had apparently come and gone while you were cleaning the onsen. You sighed, realizing the task ahead of you; you had to change Yoh's bandages.

"Alright, Yoh; sit up," you said heavily, motioning for him to scoot down closer to you so that he was not leaning on any pillows. He did so, though he looked reluctant to leave the warmth of the bedding behind him.

"Be careful," he warned jokingly, the tip of his bubblegum-colored tongue peeking out ever so slightly at you. "You wouldn't want to hurt poor little me even more, now would you?" You giggled in response, absently feeling the long strip of bandages around his chest for a place where you could start to loosen them. Finding the end sooner than you thought you would, you began to uncoil the bandages, eliciting a small hiss from Yoh when you accidentally brushed your nails against part of the burn.

"Are you okay?" you asked, eyes wide.

"Fine," Yoh responded, waving his hand dismissively, though a little too quickly to be taken seriously. You looked over to the bottles on the bedside table.

"You do realize that it's going to hurt a lot more when I have to clean these burns, don't you?" you inquired as you pulled the last bit of white fabric-ish material from Yoh's torso. His eyes widened a bit as you said this.

"Why do you have to clean them? Faust just did a few hours ago!" You sighed mentally, wondering who on earth Faust could be at the same time as the extent of how idiotic this boy was. And they say that blondes are dumb...

"They need to be cleaned more than once, Yoh-san," you reminded him. His eyes glassed over as if he was trying to make himself cry to get out of this situation.

"Why?" he whined, fake tears balancing in his eyes.

"Because you might get an infection," you said, retrieving some cotton from the bedside table, as well as a bottle of rubbing alcohol. Yoh's eyes widened, nearly creating the effect that they were the only feature on his face as you unscrewed the top of the alcohol. A sharp scent assailed the pair of you.

"But it hurts," Yoh pouted, trying to cross his arms but failing miserably due to the many blisters.

"You'll just have to deal with it, Yoh," you replied, swabbing his chest with the cold, wet cotton. He flinched, squeaking slightly and clenching whatever was within his reach tightly in his fist; surprisingly, the only thing within his reach happened to be the hem of your skirt. You blushed, quietly trying to pretend you didn't notice.

"Sorry," he muttered, blushing and letting go of the black satin dress Anna had forced you into. Somehow, you didn't mind as much as you should have when, after you had finished re-bandaging Yoh, he had asked for a favor.

"Katsumi," you heard him say quietly when you got up to leave the room.

"Yes, Yoh-san?" you asked. He probably just wanted you to turn out the light so he could go to sleep; burns have a tendency to make you tired.

"Could I have a hug?" Yoh asked softly. Seeing your awkward blush, he elaborated innocently. "It's been a long day, with Hao burning me like a bad french-fry... And since Anna would never hug me, even if I paid her--"(you highly doubted that from what Pirika had said to you almost a week ago)"--I thought that maybe _you_ would." He looked at you with hopeful eyes--the same ones Hao had used on you when he had asked to stay and make waffles.

"Why not," you sighed, returning to the bedside and wrapping your arms loosely around Yoh; you didn't want to break the blisters or anything. He hugged back sweetly, and you worried about how much it must hurt to give a hug with his entire front covered in burns. Finally breaking the hug, you leaned over and clicked off his light next to the bed.

"Oyasumi nasai, Yoh-san," you said, standing up in the sheer darkness. Then you felt a tug at the hem of your skirt.

"Can I have another hug to make up for all the times Anna never hugged me?" Yoh asked hopefully. Somehow, he reminded you of a little kid.

"Fine," you huffed mockingly, leaning over and embracing the brunette in the gloom of the bedroom.

Much to your surprise, he hugged back a good deal harder than before; apparently, Yoh had a much higher tolerance for pain than he had appeared to be when you were fixing his bandages. You gasped as he half-pulled, half-rolled you onto the bed. Then he rolled himself on top of you so that you were almost face to face, much like you and Ren had been the morning of that very day. But, instead of directing his mouth to yours, he went straight for the side of your face, somewhere between your jawbone and your ear.

As if it had been scripted, Anna burst through the door, flicking on the light and demanding to know where her dessert was, the other tenants of the inn flocking behind her.

"Katsumi, you said you made orange cheesecake and I can't find it! --Oh...my...God...! "

"You made orange cheesecake?" Yoh asked innocently, his head shooting up from somewhere awfully close to your bosom. Yet he made no attempt to remove himself from your body as Horohoro and Ren tried to squeeze through the door at the same time and ended up in a growling heap on the floor at Anna's feet.

"Katsumi!" Anna shrieked. "What the hell are you doing to my Yoh!" You attempted to remove a slightly blushing Yoh from your body as you scowled at the enraged blonde.

"What am _I_ doing!" you yelled. "What's _he_ doing! _He_ pulled me onto his bed and--!"

"You're fired," Anna stated calmly, her eyes hidden by her hair.

"What?" you stuttered, falling to the floor from the bed, as Yoh had made no attempt to remove himself from you.

"I said, 'you're fired.' Get out." Anna crossed her arms over her chest as the other girls filed into the room, taking their places by 'their' respective guys.

"_Why! _I didn't _do_ anything wrong!" you pleaded.

"You're right, if you call having an affair with my fiancé 'not doing anything wrong'!" she yelled. Clearly, the others were getting quite a show from your catfight with Anna.

"Anna, it was my fault--," Yoh tried to cut in. Somehow, Anna managed to appear at the bedside and backhand the poor brunette in the face within half a second.

"Shut up, Yoh," she barked, her eyes narrowing as she advanced on you, an ugly red mark appearing on Yoh's right cheek. You were absolutely sure that the same treatment, or worse, was in store for you. And you were absolutely right; a threatening hand flew through the air towards your face, but, by some instinct, you shielded yourself with your forearm. A gasp shot around the room like an electrical current in a bubble bath.

"You should really treat your fiancé better. He won't love you in the slightest if you bitchslap him every time he's right," you sneered, a pinkish tint forming where Anna's hand had made contact with your wrist. "In fact, I don't think he loves you at all," you observed mock-mildly. You were already fired, so what worse could Anna do? You decided to give her hell for every time she complained about something not being _exactly_ right or _just_ so.

"How _dare_ you judge our relationship!" she screeched. "You just waltz around here all day in that slutty dress, screwing up everything we girls have worked so hard for!" The other girls nodded in agreement, while the boys looked genuinely confused.

"Excuse me! You're the one who makes me where this cheap rag instead of normal clothes!"

"It illustrates the differences between social classes!"

"But why is it so short and revealing! I would have been just fine in a normal maid's uniform!"

Unknown to anyone else in the room, Horohoro unobtrusively slid his hand into his jacket pocket and guiltily fondled a spool of thread with a needle stuck through it as he regretfully contemplated the consequences for his dress-shortening actions. But by the time he had gotten back to listening the catfight, the topic was on something completely different.

"You just whine and complain about every little thing that's not exactly as you want it! Don't you care about anyone else but yourself!"

"Who the hell do you think you are saying that about me! I hired you so I _could_ have exactly what I wanted!"

"See! There you go again! It's all about _you_, isn't it?" you hissed. For some reason, this hit a nerve, and Anna completely lost herself. She threw herself at you, knocking you back slightly. You growled, knowing that your self-control was disappearing faster than Ren could drain a bottle of milk. Some odd feminine shriek originating from Anna pierced through the room as threw an enraged punch at your face, missing it completely as her momentum pulled her past you. Seizing the opportunity of a cheap shot, you shoved your elbow between her shoulder blades, flooring the fuming blonde for a few moments. The spectators seemed to be enjoying this fully, no one even trying to stop you. Every single one of them wanted to know who would be victorious; the champion or the challenger.

A sick, sadistic grin crept across your face as you watched her try to stand, but fall flat on her back as your foot connected with her face. A trail of blood trickled down from her nose, and she lunged herself at you, this time sending your back slamming to the wooden floor, she being in almost the same position as Yoh had been in a few minutes earlier.

After receiving a successful bitchslap in the face from Anna, you decided to take it a step further. Your balled fist connected somewhere near her temple, knocking her out cold on the floor. Only when you sat up, then fell back to the wooden floorboards from exhaustion did anyone say anything.

"Alright girls, break it up," Ren said casually, his hands forming the "Time-Out" signal.

Then, a faint clapping from the open window echoed slightly throughout the room. Hao was sitting on the windowsill like a coach at a boxing match, clapping slowly.

"Well done, Katsumi," he said, hopping down into the room, Opacho close in tow. Your head shot up, a goofy grin on your face.

"Thanks," you huffed. The group who had watched the fight fell over anime-style. Hao cleared his throat.

"Now that you've been fired, will you come and be my Shaman Queen?" Hao asked, a glimmer of hope sparkling in his eyes. You sighed.

"Oh...Alright," you said after eyeing the troop of people who had accumulated to watch the action, some of them friends, some of them not so much. Hao let loose an uncharacteristic squeal that sounded like it had been building up for a while, and glided over to you and picked you up bridal-style, just like a few hours before.

"Then let us be on our way, _dearest_," he said happily, walking towards the window. Why didn't he ever think to use _doors?_

Glancing over Hao's shoulder, you spied Ren, who had the most hurt expression you thought you'd ever see plastered all over his face. He took a step toward you and opened his mouth as if he were about to protest, but Pirika put a firm hand on his shoulder, shaking her head sternly. Unnoticed by everyone other than yourself, twin streams of crystalline tears flowed freely from his eyes before they plopped silently onto the hardwood floor.

Hao hopped out the window into Spirit of Fire's hand, Opacho still close behind. Just as Spirit of Fire was ascending into the sky, you heard your name being called over and over. Taking one last quick glance over your shoulder at what you were leaving, you saw Ren leaning out the second story window, tears falling freely into the dying grass below as he called your name. Turning away from the frantic Chinese boy, you gazed up into the face of Hao, who was still carrying you. He smiled happily at you, then started to babble about all the wonderful married-couple things you would do together.

As Spirit of Fire disappeared into the night sky, Hao sat you down with him in the large red hand, you sitting somewhat on top of Hao (due to his request). There, you laid your head on his chest and fell asleep, because you had another strong feeling that this was the last sleep you'd get for a while. Hao, meanwhile, also slept, happy dreams of waffles and his new bride-to-be floating around him.

**End Part XI.**


	12. Part XII

A/N: Well...this is awkward, to say the least... I feel so horrible about not writing anything in such a long time, and trust me, I'm _really sorry!_ Please don't hate me for not writing for almost a year! (_sob_) Anyway, now that I've apologized for being so depressed that this was deleted fromff . net/uninspired/lazy/uninspired again/lazy again(in that order), I'd just like to send out a big thank you to everyone who's reviewed in the past and stuck with me! _Thank you so much!_

Disclaimer: Okay, if you still think I own Shaman King after all this time, you seriously need help.

**Part XII: Of Decisions and Abandonments**

**Chapter i: Of Daydreams and False Accusations**

(3rd Person POV)

_Funbari Onsen, a few hours subsequent to Katsumi's departure..._

Ren sat silently on the edge of the back porch of Funbari Onsen, his mind racing. How had he let Katsumi be taken away that easily? If he hadn't gotten so mad when he'd bumped into her that morning, he might have been able to tell her how he really felt!

He'd had it all planned out

_While on their little evening stroll, Ren would take Katsumi to the park. They'd walk along the bridge over the pond, staring wistfully into their reflections in the smooth water's surface._

'_Katsumi,' he'd say, talking her warm hand in both of his._

'_Yes?' she'd ask, giving him one of her pouty, expectant gazes. _

'_You know...' he'd start. She'd somehow sense that this was an important moment in their relationship, and then give him her full, undivided attention. Ren would try to fight off every urge of his to blush and chicken out; he had to convey his message as clearly as he could!_

'_Mm?' she'd coax, fluttering her luminous eyes at him._

'_I've never felt this way about anyone before...ever,' he'd say. 'And I hope that you feel the same way about me... I mean, I know it's way too early to be thinking about marriage or anything like that, but...I feel like I want to spend the rest of my life with you...I think I've really fallen in love with you.' Ah! He'd have said it! That would prove his manliness to Horohoro! Anyhow, Katsumi would blush and look away coyly, and for a moment, Ren would regret having just blurted everything out. But then, just when Ren would think he was a lost cause, Katsumi would meet his gaze with only pure, utter adoration and love shining in her eyes._

'_Ren-san...' she's murmur, a charming little smile on her face. 'I think I love you, too.' And with that, their lips would meet shyly at the halfway point between them._

But now that she was gone, that image of himself and Katsumi was shattered -- gone forever. Ren sighed, willing himself not to break down into dry sobs over the whole matter. Now that he thought about it, what would his father think of this whole ordeal? After losing in the Shaman Tournament, Ren had allowed his heart to be captured by a girl -- a useless human girl! The two pinnacles of ultimate shame had manifested themselves into Ren; love and defeat. Even though Ren and his father weren't on such good terms, the younger Tao still had some shred of respect for En, and couldn't bear to think of his father's response to this whole ordeal...

Just when Ren thought he couldn't be any more unhappy, the door behind him slid open. Great, now someone was going to join him in his misery... Ren didn't turn around to greet his new companion; maybe they'd get bored and leave him alone.

"I'm sorry," came a cheerless voice from behind him. Not expecting any sort of apology, Ren jerked around to face the intruder. A yukata-clad Yoh stood in the doorway, the bandages on his chest visible in the moonlight.

"Aren't you supposed to be in bed?" Ren snapped. "Just a few hours ago, you couldn't feed even feed yourself, and now you're walking around."

"I thought this was more important than sitting by myself up in my room," Yoh said, joining Ren on the edge of the porch. He flinched when the time came to actually sit down, but nonetheless, he didn't complain.

"Why did you do it?" Ren asked, casting Yoh a glance. "Why did you make a pass at Katsumi?" Instead of answering, Yoh closed his eyes and frowned lightly.

"I'm sorry," he repeated. "I wouldn't have tried anything if I'd known how you felt for Katsumi...if I'd known what was going to happen..."

"But those things _did_ happen, Yoh," Ren said, shaking his head. "And I don't know what's going to happen next...or if I'll ever see Katsumi again."

"Nantoka naru," Yoh said dolefully, staring up at the night sky.

"Is that all you ever live by!" Ren shouted suddenly, making Yoh jump a bit.

"Ren, I was--" Yoh tried, but Ren had quite possibly snapped.

"'Nantoka naru'," Ren said, mocking Yoh's voice. "In the end, Yoh -- that's the only time things should work out! What about now! What if now i_s_ the end! What if this evening was the last time we'd ever see Katsumi! What if--"

"_Ren!_" Yoh cut in, grabbing the Chinese shaman by the shoulder before he could go off on a tangent of hysterics. The Asakura gave Ren a very sharp and uncharacteristic gaze. "Things. Will. Get. Better," he said sternly. Ren was taken aback; he'd hardly ever seen Yoh like this -- it was more something he'd expect from Anna.

"You don't know that," Ren spat, shaking off the shock and wrenching out of Yoh's grip. His golden eyes were fixated on a place in the grass. "You're just as lost and confused on this matter as anyone else is ."

"Ren--" Yoh could tell that his purple-haired companion was getting worked up again.

"Let me finish, Asakura!" Ren barked. "And do you know what the worst part of this whole mess is?" Yoh shook his head. "This is your fault!" Ren shouted, standing up and glaring down at Yoh. "If you weren't so damn horny all the time, none of this would have happened!"

"I know..." Yoh said weakly. "And I'm sorry -- I really am, Ren. If I could, I would go and rescue Katsumi by myself just to make up for it."

"--But you won't," Ren finished for him. "I know you; you'll just sit around here on your lazy ass until Hao gets sick of her and brings her back here!" Instead of shooting back a venom-filled retort like anyone else would, Yoh just leaned back onto his hands and stared up at the stars again.

"That would sure make things easier for us, ne?" he asked. As Ren stared at him, his gaze softened slowly.

"Nani?" he asked, a little confused. Yoh glanced at him, his coffee-colored eyes shining in the moonlight.

"We'll go and get Katsumi back in a couple of days," the Asakura replied. "You didn't actually think we'd let Hao keep her, did you?" Realization began to dawn on Ren, and his mind began racing again.

"Why not now?" he asked, sounding harsher than he intended to. Yoh chuckled.

"I wanna come and rescue Katsumi, too," he said. "These burns just need to heal a little before Faust will even let me out of my bed."

"You're out of your bed _now_," Ren accused, his tongari twitching a bit. Yoh grinned a bit.

"Anyway," Yoh said, pulling his yukata up a little. "Now I feel like it's my fault Katsumi's gone." Ren arched an eyebrow. "'If I wasn't so damn horny all the time'," he repeated, imitating Ren's accusation earlier. "'None of this would've happened.'" He then broke out into wild giggles. Ren just rolled his eyes, fighting off a smile.

**End Chapter i.**

**Chapter ii: New Companions and Unfulfilled Missions**

(2nd Person POV)

When you awoke the next morning, you were a little surprised to find that you weren't in your bed back at Funbari Onsen. Instead, you were laying on top of a huge red plateau in the middle of a desert, a cream-colored shawl draped over you. You gasped, frantically looking around for the one who'd brought you to this place; Asakura Hao.

"Hao!" you squealed. Since last night, he, Opacho, and Spirit of Fire had completely disappeared, leaving you all alone. "_Hao!_"

Silence, except for a chilling breeze blowing by. You were about to holler again, but then you noticed the top of a head that had just poked itself up from the edge of the plateau. Lazy brown eyes gazed up at you, a smile twinkling in them. For a moment, you were reminded of your first encounter with Hao back at Funbari Onsen. A quick glance at an almost unnoticeable scar on your hand took you even further down memory lane...

"You screamed?" Hao asked in a most debonair manner as he hoisted his shirtless self up onto the plateau with you.

"You left me," you pouted, clutching his shawl around your shoulders tightly. He grinned as he approached you.

"I'm sorry," he replied playfully, picking you up bridal-style. "Let me apologize." With a quick wiggle of the eyebrows and a mischievous smirk, his lips were suddenly pressed to yours. You could feel his body heat seeping through the shawl, warming you up a bit. Before you knew it, his tongue was in your mouth, and you were reveling in the sensation. Just as you brought your hand gently up to his face, you felt him twitch roughly, breaking the kiss.

"Hao-sama!" a shrill voice called out from behind you less than a second later. You craned your neck around roughly in surprise to see who the intruder was and what the big fuss was all about. Of course, in your haste, you accidentally managed to wiggle your way out of Hao's grip, thus falling onto the hard red stone below you.

"Oww..." you mumbled, staring up at Hao like it was his fault you fell.

"Oops," Hao laughed as he bent to retrieve you, his suave disposition shattered.

"Hao-sama!" the same annoyingly high-pitched voice screamed. You turned around (this time successfully) to see Opacho hopping up and down in exasperation.

"What is it, Opacho?" Hao grumbled after picking you up and placing you delicately on your feet. Boy, this guy was having some serious mood swings...

"Opacho just came to tell Hao-sama that the Hanagumi is back from their errand," Opacho said sheepishly. "Hao-sama doesn't need to get so grouchy at Opacho..." The androgynous little child trailed off, dragging its bare foot in a circle on the ground. Hao stared for a moment, unmoving, until his expression brightened.

"You're right, Opacho," he said, taking your hand. "I should be nicer." Hao glanced at you. "Katsumi-chan," he said, slowly leading you to the edge of the cliff. "There're some people I'd like you to meet."

"Okay," you said skeptically, not really listening. You were worried that you might have to climb down the side of the plateau. Maybe there was a path...

"I really think you're going to like them," Hao babbled as he picked you up again. "They're some of the closest people to me, so I guess it makes sense that you should meet them first." With that, Hao leapt --yes _leapt_-- off the edge of the cliff. Your eyes grew to the size of old vinyl records as you clung to his neck, trying as hard as you could not to scream as the two of you descended at an unbelievably fast pace. But before you could imagine what sort of sickening splat you would make on the rocks below, Hao landed neatly on the ground. "When you think about it, the Hanagumi are almost like family to me."

"Uh-huh..." you said, nodding stiffly. You had a feeling that every single hair on your body was standing straight up at that moment. Hao didn't take notice to your evident terror as he prattled on and on about this group of people you'd never heard of before. After he rounded a rather sharp corner around a pile of rocks, he finally set you down on your feet. You felt like your knees would give out at any second, but you made an effort to stay standing.

Three girls faced you, none of them looking the least bit interesting in you, since all of their attention was on Hao.

"Hao-sama..." they chorused, kneeling before the Asakura. You watched curiously as they reported their less-than-hoped-for results of their recent errand to your said-fiancé. He nodded slowly and elegantly, as if pondering something, and for a moment, all fell silent. During this time, one of the girls --the redhead-- finally took notice of you.

"Who's that, Hao-sama?" she asked curiously. "A new follower of yours or something?" Hao shook his head, but then shot the three girls a glare. They irked at his response.

"Since you three failed to carry out your mission," he said in an annoyed tone. "I guess I'll just have to go and do it myself." The three girls looked slightly afraid of Hao as he shuffled past them, shaking his head.

"Chotto matte, Hao!" you called, running after Hao, afraid of being left alone with those strange girls. "Don't leave!" By the time you reached him, Hao had made little distance from the plateau, and it looked like he was about to summon Spirit of Fire from somewhere unknown. He turned to face you just as you reached him.

"Katsumi-chan," he said, looking gravely serious. He took his shawl from around your shoulders and put it on. "I have to go away for a little while--but don't worry, the Hanagumi will take good care of you."

"The Hana-what?" you asked, but Hao had already focused his attention back on the Hanagumi.

"You three take care of this girl!" he shouted to his followers, and motioned to you. "She's the future Shaman Queen, so if anything happens to her while I'm gone, I'll know who to blame!"

"Hao--!" you tried one last time.

"Spirit of Fire!" the Asakura yelled into the emptiness of the desert. Immediately, the huge red figure that had brought you to this place had materialized in front of you, and Hao hopped up onto it's hand. Opacho seemed to pop out of nowhere as it joined its master on the hand. "Ja ne!" Hao called to you as Spirit of Fire disappeared into the morning sky.

"Hao! Chotto matte! You can't just leave me here!" you cried after him, but it was too late. Hao was long gone. It'd all happened so fast, and you were left staring after what was now a little shimmer of sparkling red in the sky. "Hao..." You turned back to face the three girls who'd failed their mission and were now supposed to be taking care of you, wondering what to do next. To your surprise, the three of them were gawking at you, their jaws almost touching the ground.

"Shaman Queen!" they all chorused, stiff as boards.

"No way...!" the redhead whispered; she probably hadn't meant for you to hear her, though. "I didn't think Hao-sama would chose a wife this early in his reincarnation," she said as you made your way over to the three girls. By the time you reached them, though, the shock had faded considerably, and they were back to what you assumed were their regular old selves.

You stood silently before the Hanagumi; all three girls giving you judging stares.

"Mari does not think this girl will make a good wife for Hao-sama," the blonde girl said quietly, grasping her rag doll more tightly. You gulped, noticing the pistol tied tightly into the plaything's raggedy hand; one wrong move and you were gone for.

"If Hao-sama picked her to be his Shaman Queen," the redhead said, leaning on her broomstick, "She _must_ be good at something."

"Mari does not believe you," the blonde pouted. All went silent for a moment or two, the wind blowing some red dust into the air.

"What's your name, kid?" the bluenette asked through a gently-smoking cigarette. She seemed to have more faith in you than her younger companions did.

"Katsumi," you replied shyly, but your mind was preoccupied with other things. "Where did Hao go that was so important?" you blurted out before the bluenette could say another word. She stared at you for a moment, and then chuckled.

"Slow down," she said through a seemingly-sympathetic smile. "You haven't even learned our names yet. So don't go rushing into matters that aren't even yours yet." You pouted for a moment.

"Fine..." you grumbled.

"I'm Kanna," the bluenette said calmly, then motioned to the blonde. "This is Mari." Kanna motioned to the redhead. "And this is Macchi." After saying this, though, she pulled you aside and whispered into your ear. "Watch out, Katsumi. Macchi has this habit of talking _way_ too much, and--"

"I heard that!" Macchi yelled, a vein becoming evident on her forehead as she glared at the bluenette.

"Mari is bored," Mari huffed, rolling her green eyes. "Isn't there anything for Mari to do around here?"

"--And Mari gets bored a lot," Kanna finished, looking satisfied with herself.

"Okay..." you said slowly. "Now can you tell me where Hao went?" Kanna chuckled again.

"Since these two dopes screwed up the mission, Hao-sama went to go complete it himself," she answered.

"What was the mission?" you asked.

"We were supposed to go get some stupid human device," Kanna said, looking bored. "But there were so many different kinds in the building where they were kept, that we didn't know which one Hao-sama wanted."

"I see..." you said, still a little confused at why Kanna had called whatever Hao had gone to get a 'human device.' Whatever it was, you figured that the Hanagumi couldn't tell you its purpose or function, simply because they didn't know what it was, for some reason... A little weird, but Hao was the same way about modern technology.

You sighed...it was going to be a _long_ time until Hao got back from wherever he'd gone...

**End Chapter ii.**

**End Part XII.**

A/N: "_If you weren't so damn horny all the time, none of this would have happened!"_ I didn't realize until after my third editor's cut that this didn't really have anything to do with the plot...it was just a fun accusation to throw at Yoh, so I kept it. And Yoh's reaction ("_I know..."_) just seemed to make it all the more amusing to keep in there. Then, since I loved it so much I felt I had to have Yoh repeat it, just in case someone didn't catch it the first time. Anyway, sorry you had to wait so long for this chapter. I promise I'll never make you wait that long ever again! If any of you feel like you need to yell at/scold/get Anna-psycho on me for taking so long to post this, feel free to leave a review!


	13. Part XIII

A/N: Nyarg…why am I so bad at updating? It's been months since I last worked on this story! Ahh! Actually, I have this really bad habit of literally forgetting to update my fics, since I get so caught up in being a webmistress and stuff. And even when I _do_ update, I forget to post the new chapters here. Go to http (colon) (slash) (slash) snow-angels (dot) net (slash) lost (slash) for more frequent updates. Yes, I'm a bad girl for advertising my own fanworks site... (_sweatdrop_) But anyway, if it ever seems like I'm taking to long to update, just leave a little review reminding me to update every now and then.

**Chapter XIII: Of Surprises and Bets**

"_You're not a shaman?!_" three feminine voices chorused, breaking the breezy silence of the desert. They'd just been informed that you were not, in fact a shaman, and they weren't taking it as well as you'd hoped.

"Umm...nope," you replied, giving them a shrug and an apologetic smile. Macchi rolled her eyes.

"What good is a Shaman Queen who isn't even a shaman?" she groaned angrily, scowling. You were about to ask what on earth a Shaman Queen was, but Mari prevented you.

"Mari doesn't know," the blonde said thoughtfully, though she looked as put out as her companion. Macchi huffed.

"That was a rhetorical question, Mari! Meaning you're not supposed to actually answer it!" the redhead almost shrieked out of frustration. Apparently the news of you being the next Shaman Queen was taking its toll on the Hana-gumi.

"Mari didn't know that!" Mari whined, hugging her doll defensively. Then she lowered her green eyes to the ground, tightening her grip on the ragged plaything even more. "Mari wanted to be Hao-sama's Shaman Queen..." Kanna sighed.

"Didn't we all..." she said quietly, dropping down to sit on the ground slightly dejectedly. She puffed on her cigarette for a moment, then looked up at you. "You really lucked out, Katsumi," she said cynically.

"Huh?" In waiting for Mari to answer yet another rhetorical question, you'd spaced out momentarily.

"Hao-sama has never been one to fall in love," Kanna informed you. "He's only told us about one other woman he's ever loved, and that was his wife from almost five-hundred years ago." You started a bit; Hao was more than five-hundred years old?! You decided to keep your mouth shut and just ask Hao himself when he got back.

"He was married?" you asked, trying to keep conversation going without sounding too dumb. Kanna laughed quietly, while Mari and Macchi sat down on the ground with her. Feeling like the odd one out, you sat down with them, forming a little circle with the three others.

"Sure was," Kanna said, taking her cigarette out of her mouth and tapping off some ashes into the ground. "Even had a kid, too." You squeaked, covering your mouth with your hand.

"W-What happened to his wife and child?" you asked nervously. This was just getting too wierd!

"They're long gone," the bluenette responded, putting the cigarette back into her mouth. "But he's got plenty of descendants. We see one running around here every once in a while."

"Really?" you asked.

"Yeah," Macchi said, sounding a little gossipy. "There's this one kid in Japan who thinks he's all that just because he's Hao-sama's other half...what's his name, again?"

"Asakura Yoh," Kanna said. "Jeez, Macchi, we've been assigned to kill him more than once; I think you should at least know his name by now."

"Mari hates that boy!" the blonde suddenly shouted. "The last time she saw him, he almost killed her, and then he tried to date her!"

"That's a lie," Macchi said offhandedly. "After he beat you, he said he liked you and that he wanted to fight you again some time."

"Asakura Yoh said he wanted to play with Mari, not that he wanted to fight her! Mari thinks what Asakura Yoh wanted to do to her is dirty!" The blonde continued fuming until Kanna cut in.

"That's enough, Mari," she said, instantly quieting her green-eyed companion. Then she looked to you.

"As I was saying before, you're really lucky to have melted away the cold exterior of Hao-sama's heart," Kanna said. "You've done something only one other person has ever done before." You blushed, looking down at your hands in your lap.

"Umm…Lucky me?" you asked nervously, punctuating with a giggle.

"Damn right," Kanna grunted. The other two girls sighed. "The way I see it, you'll be Shaman Queen in just a couple of months." Shaman Queen, Shaman Queen, Shaman Queen! What the hell was a Shaman Queen?!

"I-If you don't mind me asking, what's this 'Shaman Queen' everyone keeps talking about?" you asked innocently, hoping that at last you wouldn't be the only one out of the loop.

"_Are you serious?!_" Macchi shrieked girlishly, her powerful voice blowing back your hair and maid's dress. You nodded stiffly, eyes wide. Kanna's cigarette dropped right out of her gaping mouth upon slowly realizing that the future Shaman Queen didn't even know what a Shaman Queen was.

"See?!" Mari wailed, hugging her doll tightly. "Mari told you this girl won't make a good wife for Hao-sama!"

"Well, I might make a better one if someone would tell me what this 'Shaman Queen' thing is!" you yelled, jumping to your feet. A second later, eyes huge, you slapped a trembling hand over your mouth. These girls were most definitely _not _people to be screaming at. They could kill you in an instant!

"If you _have _to know," Macchi said agitatedly, rolling her blue eyes away from you. "The Shaman Queen's main purpose is to have the Shaman King's kids."

"_Huh?!_" you shrieked, your face turning the color of a cherry. You clasped your arms around your stomach, imagining the hideous bulge you'd have to deal with for months on end. And the mood swings and morning sickness and cravings for weird foods… You were _so _not ready to be pregnant!

"It's not just for kicks, you know," Kanna said, groping around in the dirt for her dropped cigarette. "You have to bear a large number of children to increase the chance that the Shaman King's genes will be carried on for at least the next 500 years."

"Why 500 years?" you asked, sitting back down.

"That's when the next Shaman Fight is,' Mari said matter-of-factly. By then, Kanna had given up her search for the lost cigarette, and was in the process of retrieving a new one from the carton she'd gotten from God-knows-where.

"Having a Shaman King in your family history really bodes well with the Great Spirit when the time comes to make the choice between you and all the other competing shamans," Kanna clarified. The cigarette carton had since been replaced by a canary-yellow lighter, and in a few moments, a fresh cloud of smoke hovered over the bluenette.

"But back to the Shaman Queen," you insisted. "What else does she do?" Kanna sighed.

"If she's a good enough shaman," she said. "And believes in her husband's cause enough, then the Great Spirit will grant her 500 years of immortality and youth, just like the Shaman King." Your mouth fell open and your eyes widened. 500 years of life and youth?! Even if it meant having to be pregnant for a while in the beginning, you wanted to live for 500 years! You couldn't wait to see everything the world had in store for the next five centuries!

"I wanna be the Shaman Queen!" you yelled enthusiastically, hopping to your feet once more. "I wanna live for 500 years! It'll be so cool!" The three girls stared at you for a moment, then burst out laughing. They tumbled over each other, pounding their fists on the ground and grasping their sides.

"Did you hear that, Mari?!" Macchi shrieked. "She says she's gonna be the Shaman Queen! And she's not even a shaman!"

"Mari heard!" the blonde laughed. "Mari heard! What a silly idea this girls has!" A vein appeared on your forehead.

"Why's this funny?!" you demanded, stomping your foot. "I'm gonna be the Shaman Queen! In fact, I'm gonna be the best Shaman Queen there ever was! _Ever!_" The girls paused for a moment, then started laughing even harder, tears streaming down their cheeks.

"Baka! You have to at least be a shaman first!" Kanna said, cackling. You pouted.

"Fine then!" you wailed. "Becoming a shaman'll be no problem! I'll bet you all that I can become one in a week! Maybe less!"

"You're on!" Kanna hooted, rolling on the ground, still in hysterics.

"You're gonna regret laughing when I'm your Shaman Queen! Just you wait!"

**End Part XIII.**

A/N: Yeah, I really need to stop watching Naruto before I try to write Mankin fics. Katsumi has _way _too much of an ego in this chapter. Of course, I know a lot of us quiet folks have these explosive moments… (Guilty!) Anyway, I'm actually going to start using that little 'Reply to Review' link, starting this chapter, instead of that big bulky paragraph I'm so fond of… (Loose translation of that last sentence: Anonymous reviewers should get accounts here to I can respond to you without breaking that stupid no-responding-to-reviewers-in-your-chapter rule. Or at least leave an email address so I can reach you. Responding to reviews has always been my favorite part of fanfiction.) Is it just me, or am I awfully full of myself in these Author's Notes?


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